Fly Me to the Moon
by Angel Unit 2
Summary: Initial contact. Seele has hidden themselves well around lake Onyusha, so Takihiro sees himself making a very tought decision. But will the medicine prove to be worse than the illness?
1. Genesis 0:1

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here..  
"I'm home"  
  
"Welcome back."  
  
=====  
  
"FIRE!"  
  
The first line of Turrets fired a barrage of ER Large Lasers, their coils and wiring vibrated and heated under the immense pressure. Each powerful enough to create a beam of light capable of piercing steel and alloys, they now concentrated their fire on the falling object.  
  
"We have contact."  
  
"Roger that," responded Takihiro. "Allow it to free-fall. Upon impact, have a squadron search the area and a lance ready for unfriendly intercepts."  
  
Takihiro looked up at the large screen, the image of an object rapidly falling surrounded in fire in the distance. At 28, with large black eyes with a tint of violet, and tall, Takihiro was a sight to behold. His square unshaved jaw gave a hint of mixed ancestry, although he always proclaimed Japanese. He was Tactical Commander for Tokyo-5's Nerv Defense Forces, as well as Training Director in Japan's only Mech Training School. Always sought after by the ladies, Takihiro was still, strangely, a bachelor. His work gave him no time for anything else, which pleased his superiors just fine. In the large Tactics Room, he stood in the middle platform, along with his three aides. Kadena, his Communications Officer, sat at Takihiro's left, Tenku, his Tactical Officer, sat in front of him. Finally, there was Yuri, the Statistics Officer, sitting on the right side. Above them all, sat Commanders Gendou and Evans. They shared command of Japan's ISDF, but it was understood that Gendou ran the show, and that Evans was simply his right hand man, positions that pleased them both. Lastly, underneath both platforms, was the Main Floor. There, sat various officers constantly making sure that everything ran in the order it should, and that orders were carried out. Everyone had their positions in a horseshoe shaped room surrounding the green colored 3-dimensional topographical map of Tokyo-5, and, on top, an at a 45-degree angle facing everyone, was the orange grid diving it. On the wall everyone faced was the monitor.  
  
"This is Rogue Squadron leader. We have a visual."  
  
"Dispatch it through," ordered Takihiro.  
  
A still-image appeared on the monitor.  
  
"Obviously, it's a mech," said Tenku. "It's humanoid, and it stands eye-to- eye to an assault mech, though it's a lot thinner. Apparently, no weapons."  
  
"Have you made contact?"  
  
"Negative," responded Kadena. "No intercom or radio contact. I don't recognize the markings either. Could be pirate or merc, but I doubt it. Where would they get either the tech or credit to build something like that?"  
  
"Yuri, is anyone alive in there?"  
  
"Yes," she responded. "I'm getting a heartbeat, but it's irregular. I think there might be two people inside."  
  
"Where is the lance I sent out?"  
  
"They are approaching target."  
  
"Put me through. Lance leader, do you read?"  
  
"Roger, Commander."  
  
"Approach target with extreme caution. If hostile, you will destroy it."  
  
"No, you won't."  
  
Surprised, Takihiro turned to see who spoke.  
  
"You will not attack it, harm it, or try to restrain it in any way." It was Commander Gendou. "I want it in here intact."  
  
Takihiro was speechless. Gendou, it seemed, would be taking control of the situation. There was nothing to do, even if it meant endangering lives.  
  
"How do we transport it?"  
  
"Use one of the old cages."  
  
"But those exits are ancients. No one is allowed in them. We don't even know how old they are."  
  
"Use the old cages. When it comes to itself, the unit and pilot will know the way."  
  
"Commander, you mean you've been expecting it?"  
  
"It is truly none of your concern."  
  
"Commander, this is Lance leader. What do you want us to do about the mech?"  
  
"Lance leader" responded Takihiro, trying to ignore Gendou's response. "Guard unit until transports arrive."  
  
"Roger that, Commander. We'll surround it."  
  
Takihiro simply stared at the mech. Its design truly like none he had ever seen. This mech was definitely beyond anything he had ever seen before, maybe even surpassing Clan Omnimechs. Perhaps the Terran government had designed it in secret as the next line of mechs. But there were, simply, too many questions, but his thoughts were broken by Tenku's shouting.  
  
"Commander! There is something else entering our atmosphere! It's approaching at an incredible rate!"  
  
"I.D.?"  
  
"None! Impact in 3."  
  
"2."  
  
"1."  
  
Silence.  
  
Then came the shouts.  
  
"Mech down! I repeat Mech down! We are retreating!"  
  
"What happened Give me visual!"  
  
Everyone stared at the shaky feed taken from one of the retreating mech cameras. The fallen mech had literally been vertically split in two by a clear solid line, thought it still had not fallen apart. Between the two pieces stood, to everyone's amazement a lance. Long and thing, it had two throngs that pierced the ground through the eviscerated mech, and its handle long raised above it.  
  
"Repeat! We are heading for cover! We are now in full retreat!"  
  
"Tenku! Give me enemy visual!"  
  
"Sir! Satellite feed provides none! That thing simply fell out of the sky!"  
  
"Kadena! Contact Central Command! Alert them about a possible attack!"  
  
"Disregard that order, officer." Again it was Gendou. "Commander Takihiro, have the remaining lance units go back and surround the unit and its weapon."  
  
"Sir! We just lost a mech and pilot! They were literally cut in half!"  
  
"Do as you are told, Commander."  
  
Takihiro stared hard at Gendou, but he did not take notice back. Gendou simply sat staring at the screen, resting his gloved hands against his lips. Evans standing to Gendou's right, also simply looking at the screen. Takihiro turned and stared at the unit. Truly it was like nothing he had ever seen before. It was thin, but everything about it projected muscles. It looked more human than machine. It was purple, with several teal highlights. It's head even had two eyes, and a well formed mouth. He stared hard at the machine, trying to figure out what it was, but nothing made sense. Takihiro simply stared at it and read the writings on its arms and shoulders.  
  
TEST TYPE UNIT 01  
  
=====  
  
"Gendou, after more than a millennia, the Evas are back."  
  
Gendou did not respond. There was no need to. Both Gendou and Evans stared perhaps at what could be their deaths. 


	2. Genesis 0:2

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here..  
"Officer Yuri," Gendou said. "I'm uploading, into your extension, the programs needed to run the cage and its exits. I'm also sending you the username and password."  
  
"I have received them, Commander."  
  
"Then begin running them."  
  
"Roger that."  
  
Yuri began typing furiously. Every command and script began to take shape and form in her monitor. Vital Sign Connectors began to appear, as well as Synch Ratios. The side walls surrounding the room, usually used as large monitors, suddenly turned red with the words "CAUTION" and "DANGER" covering them. Everyone stopped and stared at what could have caused the alarm.  
  
"Disregard the alarm," Gendou announced throughout the building. "It is the software updating itself with our current one. It's performing a test run."  
  
=====  
  
"Test run, my as..."  
  
"Commander, the mech is secured."  
  
"Roger that. Kadena, inform Commanders Gendou and Evans that the mech is secured."  
  
"Roger."  
  
Takihiro and Tenku looked straight at the massive purple head, and two large yellow eyes stared back at them. Standing on top of a bridge, they faced the mech's directly. From the neck down the mech was covered in red LCL, the liquid used long ago for genetic experimentation because of its similarities to the liquid found in a mother's womb. Its arms and shoulders were restrained by locks and bolts connected to side walls. Apparently, the Commanders wanted the pilot restrained.  
  
Takihiro followed every contour and curve with his eyes. Never had he seen anything like this. Every mech he had ever piloted, seen, and commanded could not compare to this. From first glance one could see that it was built for speed, but what impressed Takihiro the most were the hand actuators. They were not bulky and closed in fist form, but rather sleek and slender, like real human hands. Whatever this thing was, it had been modeled as close to a human being as possible.  
  
"Commander Takihiro."  
  
Takihiro glanced up the window behind the mech. Commander Gendou, with Sub- Commander Evan next to him, stood looking impatiently down upon the mech and the crew surrounding it.  
  
"Stand by to receive the pilot."  
  
=====  
  
"Yuri," Evans called out. One of the many monitors surrounding them turned from its STAND-BY screen to Yuri's image.  
  
"Commander?"  
  
"Release the plug."  
  
"Roger, Commander."  
  
=====  
  
Takihiro ran up the stairs, while Tenku ran the other side. He came on time to see a hydraulic army lower itself, as the mech's back opened into two sides. A think cylinder ejected and was grabbed by the arm. It picked it up and moved it to the side of the mech's head unto a platform. On the floor, a hatch opened up, releasing extremely hot steam. Takihiro backed away from it.  
  
He waited for a minute until the steamed died out. Then cautiously stepped towards the hatch. There was still steam inside, but it had cooled down. He looked inside, and rested his arm on the inside of the plug, but quickly removed it as he noticed it was filled with liquid.  
  
"LCL?" He thought.  
  
He heard a small cough. As more steam cleared, he noticed a form. Someone was sitting in the middle.  
  
"Are you okay?"  
  
Takihiro moved completely inside, kneeling, and ignoring his pants, shirt, and jacket getting wet. Finally he saw the pilot.  
  
"He's nothing more than a child?" He thought. "This is the pilot?"  
  
The boy stirred in his seat. Softly he opened his eyes, and looked up to Takihiro.  
  
"Kaji," he whispered. "You look like Misato."  
  
And his head dropped.  
  
=====  
  
Takihiro stood at the door as they wheeled away the boy on a stretcher. He was perplexed by the events that had occurred to suddenly. He felt he was losing control of his department and staff. It seemed like the Commanders would be assuming absolute control of the Tokyo-5 Center. And now a boy, no more, probably, than fifteen. This was perhaps proving to much for Takihiro. But now he had two things to think about. First he had to deal with the killed mech pilot and the destroyed mech. He would have to fill out tons of paperwork, as well as deal with the pilot's family in breaking out the news. But above that, he had to deal with the bizarre way that the strange mech had moved from the impact point to the cage. And deal, as well, with a giant lance.  
  
=====  
  
"Gendou, what do you feel?"  
  
"I feel nothing." 


	3. Genesis 0:3

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here.  
He sat in the middle. Twelve pillars, each enumerated, surrounded him.  
  
"We waited too long, twice. Every time we came close, Adam found a way to evade us."  
  
"The First Impact was created by God in order to save man. The Second Impact was created by the Angels in the attempt to save themselves from man. The Third Impact was created by man in an attempt to save themselves from the Angels. We are now at the dawn of the Fourth Impact. Now we will see if man can save himself from God. Too much time has passed since the program began, and the return of Adam and the Third Child will be a hindrance."  
  
"I hope the return of the pilot will not affect you in long road ahead."  
  
He remained quiet.  
  
"Even so, the return of Unit 01shall more than satisfy our needs. Since Unit 01 and Adam are now one, then the Angels need not attack. This will be of great aid to us."  
  
"It is not the angels whom we shall worry about. Kerensky's children will try to obtain Adam in order to incorporate it into their ranks. So far their genetic experimentations with their own have proved successful. They have survived for so long and vast improvements have been made."  
  
"They are many, yet they failed to reach us. It took only one Unit with Adam to almost destroy our entire planet. We need not worry about them. We should take care that we are not sabotaged from within, again. That proved to be our downfall."  
  
"Gendou, prepare as planned. Do not make the same mistakes you did a millennia ago. The rest of our discussion does not concern you."  
  
The twelve pillars vanished. Gendou sat in the middle of his office, Evans stood next to him.  
  
"Well?" Asked Evans. "What do you think? I think that for people dead 1000 years, their essence still remains the same."  
  
"They were wrong when they thought that it is now man against God. Neither is it man against the Angels or man, but against himself. Man need not fear God because he has made himself smarter than God, by creating his own version of God. Unit 01 is proof of that. The Angels we do not concern ourselves about, though I know they will let their presence be known now that Adam has returned. But man should fear himself above everything else. In an attempt to copy God we created a god that nearly destroyed humanity. We laid blame on Old Russia, saying it was the Second Soviet Civil War and the use of its nuclear arsenal which wiped out almost a third of our population. And everyone believed us. Even after all those catastrophes, we knew it would occur again, and now it will. We are so selfish, that in our attempt to make ourselves perfect, we destroy our next of kin. The expansion and the creation of the Successor State and the Clans proves how selfish we are. We want to grow, not for the benefit of our own, but simply our own. We kill each other without remorse, without second thoughts."  
  
"If you feel so strongly about it, then why not destroy it before it destroys again?"  
  
"You ask me to stop doing that for which I was born for. In this I have no freewill, nor do I have the energy to assume freewill. That is the problem with what I am, simply born to perform a task."  
  
"And the boy?"  
  
"He is not important. When the time comes, he shall be disposed of."  
  
=====  
  
Takihiro looked down upon the boy. He still slept, uncomfortably, it seemed. Tubes and sensors covered half his body. Occasionally there was a twitching in the eyes.  
  
"At least he's dreaming." Thought Takihiro. "That's a good sign."  
  
He looked at the boys report.  
  
Names: Ikari Shinji DOB: -- -- ---- ID: --- -- ---- -- Bio Notes: See Commander Ikari Gendou  
  
"What?" Shock immersed him. "They are related? He let a relative of his pilot that machine?" 


	4. Genesis 0:4

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here..  
Their orders finally came.  
  
"Man! I am starving!" Kadena screamed out.  
  
All four bowed their heads, put their hands together and prayed.  
  
"Thank you for the food!" They prayed in unison.  
  
Takihiro started slurping loudly, along with Kadena and Tenku. They had just come out of their regular 12-hour shift. With only light snack feedings in-between, the three guys, along with Yuri, who had decided to accompany them, were starving for real food. Soon, plate after plate were beginning to pile up on top of each other, as the men's insatiable hunger did not seem to dissipate.  
  
Every evening at 6, the four officers would have dinner together at Takihiro's expense, in a little restaurant about 3 blocks from the Main Building. After leaving the Academy with top honors and at the top of his class, Takihiro was quickly snatched by Terra's secret service known loosely as "NERV." He was trained as a Mech pilot, and later Commander, but most of his efforts went into Base Command, a position he knew, where he would attain greater rank, than simply piloting. After 4 years in Nerv, he was promoted as Nerv's Tactical Commander, with the condition that he would head Tokyo 5's Training School. There, he was given 3 new recruits. Since they were younger, from 22 to 24, than him, 27, and were not trained in a military lifestyle, he decided to take them under his wing, as a big, authoritative, brother figure. It paid off. He got motivated officers, whom, under any circumstances, would follow orders to a "t," while they got someone who made sure they were taken care of inside the military.  
  
"I just lost all my appetite looking at you guys eat." Muttered Yuri while she held her first plate, while the others were already in their fifth.  
  
"Oh, come on!" Said Kadena. "You can't tell me that just by looking at us eat, you're going to loose your appetite!"  
  
All three men stopped eating and stared at each other for a while. Bits and pieces of food stuck out their mouths.  
  
"Nah!" They roared as they resumed eating. Yuri simply sighed, closed her eyes and began to slowly eat.  
  
"I heard the kid woke up today." Tenku said. "What was his name? Shinji, wasn't it?"  
  
"Shinji, yes." Yuri answered. "He opened his eyes today, but in his condition, he looks comatose. He occasionally whispers, but when we listen in, he seems to be talking to himself. He seems to address a girl named Asuka."  
  
"Is it true he's related to Commander Ikari?"  
  
"Could be coincidence. Everyone speaks about it, but no one has anything on it, yet. We ran a DNA test on the kid, but the results were taken by the Commanders, both Ikari and Evans. Sir, do you know anything?"  
  
"You guys know that I don't like to talk about work while I eat," Takihiro responded as he put down his bowl of noodles. "Besides, I am also being kept in the dark."  
  
"Whatever it's happening right now," added Kaneda, "it's meant to be kept secret. We don't even have a name, or the body, of the second occupant inside the mech."  
  
"There was no second occupant. The "famous" second heartbeat everyone heard was caused by the boy himself while he was inside the cockpit, or the "Plug" as we are calling it now. All everyone heard was an echo."  
  
All four turned to see who spoke. Standing behind them was Sub-Commander Evans and his daughter Dr. Daniella Evans. It has been Dr. Evans who had spoken.  
  
"May we join you?" Commander Evan asked.  
  
Everyone turned immediately to Takihiro. When he had first joined Nerv, he met Daniella, two years his senior, but a romance, nonetheless, began. Both, being young and ambitious, began to nurture their careers, rather than their relationship. Things turned sour when Daniella was ordered as a Statistics Officer in Strana Mechty for the Clans' Trial of Refusal. Takihiro was bitter than she did not fight to stay, while Daniella was bitter that Takihiro did not fight to keep her in Terra. While they were on separate paths, they both moved up in rank. Takihiro moved up in Strategy and Tactics, while Daniella moved up in Statistics and Health. Being brought back together at Nerv had not being easy, either for them or everyone else.  
  
"Commander, please take a sit," he responded, not even glancing towards their direction. "As for your guest, well, I guess she can join us as well. There in so point, now, in being rude, correct?"  
  
"No, there isn't."  
  
As everyone moved around to make room for the new guests, Yuri began to ponder on Dr. Evans response. According to Evans, the second heartbeat had been caused by an echo inside the plug, but her systems terminal had recorded it. If the heartbeats would have been the same, then the delayed one would still have moved under the same tempo as the first, but in this case there was a difference between the two. While one heartbeat was beating at one, the second heartbeat had a slower beat, which was regularly related to people of larger size. Whether Dr. Evan was telling the truth or not, Yuri could not decide, but for now she decided to keep quiet about it. Nerv was not known for having a forgiving nature for officers who defied or tried to prove wrong their superior officers.  
  
"Takihiro?" Asked Dr. Evans, as she sipped tea. "I heard you would be put in charge of the boy once I released him from intensive care."  
  
"First of all," he responded as he resumed eating without looking at her, "I will not be called by my name in front of my officers, Dr. Evans. If you wish to address me, you will address me as Commander Takihiro. As for the boy, I had not the slightest idea I would be babysitting anyone."  
  
"Well, Commander," Commander Evans said. "Once the boy is seen to be fit to leave Intensive Care, he will be placed under your care. It has already been decided by both Commander Ikari and myself."  
  
"Well, regarding that, why doesn't Commander take the boy in? Aren't they related, if at least by name?"  
  
"The name Ikari," responded Dr. Evans, "is as common as any other name, whether here on Terra, or even in the Draconis Combine area of control. And the order is already being given. There is no say in it."  
  
Yuri noticed that Commander Evans did not answer, but simply held his cup as if trying to concentrate.  
  
=====  
  
"Ikari, Shinji."  
  
He opened his eyes when he heard his name. The voice calling him was too familiar to be unrecognizable. Even the tone of voice, cold and uncaring, was still the same. He did not want to see him, but he had to. After everything that had happened, maybe this time he would give him some words of encouragement. At least tell him that everything was going to be alright.  
  
"Father?"  
  
"Ikari, Shinji. What year is it?"  
  
"What? I don't understand?"  
  
"What year is it?"  
  
"It's. It's 2014."  
  
Why would he ask him that? 


	5. Genesis 0:5

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here...  
  
"It runs under an external power supply. Without a connection it can run for 12 hours in a dormant state, allowing the pilot to live that long until retrieval is achieved. Under a full combat run, the battery can run out as fast as 5 minutes, along with life support."  
  
"Not very fuel-efficient. So, since it's connected to an "extension cord", if it's accidentally cut, then the pilot only has but a few minutes to get out alive."  
  
"That's pretty much it."  
  
"And where exactly do we attach weaponry."  
  
"We don't. It only carries handheld weaponry."  
  
Takihiro wiped his face in frustration. Here he was with a mech, with apparently no purpose, because for combat against other mechs it was useless, and no one was allowed to test it under Commander Ikari's orders.  
  
"Okay," he said. "If I give it a handheld missile launcher, will it be able to carry it? Are its polyacetene fibers able to endure that kind of weight? For pete's sake, how much weight will this thing be able to carry? If I send it out to combat, can it carry enough ammo to sustain itself?"  
  
"Actually, sir," Yuri responded, "I can't even test how much it can carry. It has no critical allocation spaces, so I can't give it a weapons configuration test. And not only that, but its internal structure is not steel or the newer endo-steel, and the undercarriage is not myomer, at all."  
  
"If it's not made out of metal, then what is it made out of?"  
  
"Sir, it's made out of living tissue."  
  
Takihiro turned to the direction of the mech. He did not know what it was, but something began to creep inside him.  
  
"You're telling me this thing is alive?"  
  
"Alive would mean it is conscious of its existence. But this is merely an extension of the pilot. Unlike our mechs, or clan technology, this mech does not only reply to the pilot's movement coordination, but also to its emotional state. Emotions like anger and desperation can be channeled to the mech, resulting in better performance. The brain is still the pilot."  
  
Takihiro was in a control room, and with him were Yuri and Dr. Evans, who had just spoken. Both him and Yuri were there to try to figure out as much as possible about the mech without having to interfere with the Commander's orders. Dr. Evans seemed to be running tests on her own, but she occasionally turned to look at Takihiro, who seemed to be breaking under pressure. Having been assigned the new mech, but having been given no additional information about it, Takihiro felt he had been told to take care of something he could not touch, look, or feel.  
  
"Wait a second," he said. "Yuri is saying this thing is made of tissue, and you just confirmed that. So the second heartbeat was not created by an echo, but by this thing. You're telling me this thing also has internal organs? If it has a heart, does it have lungs? If it has lungs, then it needs blood. What else does it have? A liver? A stomach? Do we have to feed that thing?"  
  
Takihiro's voice grew excited with anger, yet Dr. Evans' voice remained calm.  
  
"You don't have to do anything, besides your regular tasks performed on a mech. That is maintenance and weapons check and reload. Yuri and I will be taking charge of its internal systems run, and the pilot. Of course, you know, this is all classified. Everyone else will simply take it as a new mech, and it's your job to make sure no one begins snooping around."  
  
"Who knows about this?"  
  
"No one besides those that need to know."  
  
"And how long have you known about it."  
  
"Long enough to understand its importance."  
  
"Doctor?" Yuri asked. "These pilot synch tests. When do we run them?"  
  
"As early as tomorrow. Since the pilot is awake, I can push the tests."  
  
"And it's the boy who will be piloting it?" Takihiro asked, calming down.  
  
"Yes. His age range is the most qualified. An older mind might find the task of synchronizing with another too much of a burden due to emotional baggage. After the age of thirteen, many adolescents are still free of unnecessary burdens, but are old enough to carry responsibilities. In the case of our pilot, he is fourteen, and, most importantly, he has experience. We shouldn't waste such an opportunity."  
  
"Where was he trained?"  
  
"That, I do not know. When I got the reports, he was already classified as a pilot. But I do know that there might be others, but I don't know when, or if, we will see them."  
  
"And how do you know there are others?"  
  
"Because, as a pilot, he is referred to as the Third Child."  
  
"Doctor," said Yuri, trying to find the right question. "Why did you keep us in the dark?"  
  
"Simple. I could not share any of this with you until I knew you two were cleared. Kadena and Tenku will have to be kept out of this, of course. Only Yuri and myself will be the only ones allowed to tamper with the insides of the mech. Everyone else will deal with its exterior."  
  
"Agreed. But I can't fit this thing with our weaponry. I will need handheld armament."  
  
"Understood. But I am not in charge of that, so you will have to request them from Commander Ikari. But before you begin readying it for battle, I will have to run the performance tests on the mech and the pilot."  
  
"And that will begin tomorrow?"  
  
"At the latest."  
  
"Doctor," Again asked Yuri. "What about the computer system."  
  
"Right now I need to see the pilot. As soon as I am done with him, I'll come by and we'll finish it off. Meanwhile, start putting in the new commands up to code line 21-33. After that we'll both have to do it at the same time."  
  
Saying that, Dr. Evans stepped out. Takihiro looked around the control room. Three more were being built around the dock housing the mech. As of right now, the rooms were nothing more than a pile of monitors and holo-vid monitors with control panels scattered all over the floor. But he knew that both, Daniella and Yuri, were extremely talented. By tomorrow, he knew for sure, this room would be a true control room.  
  
"So what new program is this?" He asked as he got a closer look at Yuri's terminal.  
  
"Dr. Evans designed a system where at critical moments, it would respond more efficiently to critical conditions involving the mech and other factors."  
  
"And how does it know how to respond?"  
  
"Usually, terminals are composed of one "mind" that controls decision making. In this case, there would be three. That way, the chance of error is greatly reduced by having a decision taken as a majority, rather than the single overpowering choice of one."  
  
"And what is this system called?"  
  
"MAGI."  
  
=====  
  
"Once again, I'm in a strange place."  
  
The door opened, and he immediately closed his eyes, pretending sleep. Dr. Evans wasn't tricked so easily, so she simply stepped inside and took a seat next to him.  
  
"Shinji, I am Dr. Evans. I want to talk to your for a little while."  
  
He did not respond, but simply remained still.  
  
"I know you're not sleeping. I used the same trick on my parents, you know. So, I want to ask you a couple of questions. But I need you to look at me."  
  
He opened his eyes and slowly turned to her.  
  
"You know you will have to pilot again."  
  
"I don't want to. Because of me, everyone is dead, except my father."  
  
Suddenly he remembered.  
  
"Kaji! I saw Kaji! I want to talk to him!"  
  
She was taken by surprise by the sudden change in the boy's demeanor.  
  
"Shinji! Please! Tell me who Kaji is, and we'll go see him."  
  
"Kaji is the one that opened the plug! I remember! Please I want to see him!"  
  
"No, Shinji. The ones that opened the hatch were Tenku and Takihiro. I saw them while they did it."  
  
"No! Please! I remember Kaji. His face! Does he still have his ponytail? I know it was him! He still does not shave!"  
  
She realized he was talking about Takihiro. He had confused him with someone else, but if that was what it took, then she had no other choice. Her job was to make sure the pilot was ready, and the mech in synch with the pilot. Commander Ikari was very specific about the program. Everyone involved knew that time was running out. As long as the pilot was not functioning correctly, then Nerv was prone to attack. Unfortunately, Daniella had no idea where the attack was coming from.  
  
"Shinji," she sighed. "Get dressed. We're going to see Kaji."  
  
She got up and left the room. As the door closed, she realized that that might be the reason why Takihiro was assigned the boy. The pilot was still a child, and it would need a familiar face to cope with the changes. And in the way things ran with Commander Ikari, it looked like the boy would get no encouragement from him. 


	6. Genesis 0:6

I don't own anything in here.  
"Commander Takihiro, please contact Dr. Evans. Commander Takihiro, please contact Dr. Evans. Commander Takihiro."  
  
"Now what?" He muttered as he picked up the nearest extension and dialed Daniella's code number. "Yes? What is it?"  
  
Takihiro, Kadena and Tenku were sitting on a table discussing strategic placement of the new mech before they were interrupted by the call. So far, as far as they could think, the only military use for the new mech was close combat. Since it contained no criticals, then it was useless in long range, but due to its speed and agility, noted in its shape and silhouette, it could prove more than efficient in running circles around the slower and more cumbersome mechs.  
  
"Right now I'm in Conference Room B-7. No, I'm with Kadena and Tenku. Why?"  
  
Kadena and Tenku turned to Takihiro once they heard their names being called.  
  
"Me? Why? What is he saying?"  
  
A long pause as Takihiro began to pace back and forth listening to the other end of the line.  
  
"And it has to be now? I'm trying to get the Commander's approval for new equip."  
  
Another long pause.  
  
"I understand. Then bring him here now. I won't be any less busier later on."  
  
He hanged up, and turned to his two officers. By the look in his face, both Kadena and Tenku, could see more pressure building up.  
  
"The boy is completely awake and is requested to see me."  
  
"Any reason why?" Tenku asked.  
  
"Dr. Evans says is because I remind him of someone. Or rather he mistook me for someone else. And since we have to get the boy ready, then Dr. Evans is ready to try anything."  
  
"Seems like she's running out of ideas," Kadena commented.  
  
"Actually," Takihiro responded. "I think she might be getting new ones."  
  
=====  
  
"Does anything look familiar?" Dr. Evans asked as she put away her extension.  
  
Both Shinji and her were walking across a dark corridor, but as they turned a corner one of the walls was replaced by a large window. As Shinji looked out the window, he paused.  
  
"This was were we had our synch ratio performance tests." He sighed and continued speaking softly to himself. "How long has it been?"  
  
"Quite a long time," responded Dr. Evans, thinking that Shinji had addressed her. "This was all recreated to give you, Shinji, a place where you may feel comfortable."  
  
"And I'm the only one left? Except for Kaji and my father?" He whispered.  
  
She did not hear him and began walking, signaling to him to follow her.  
  
"Come on Shinji. We must continue."  
  
=====  
  
The door opened and Shinji stepped in first. He looked at the man standing in the middle of the room and the at the other two, but his gaze returned to the man in the middle. He looked long and hard, but after a couple of seconds, he turned away in shame. First, he could not stare eye to eye with a man with so much confidence, and second, this was not Kaji. This was not the Kaji he was looking for.  
  
Dr. Evans stepped inside and signaled to Takihiro to begin talking to the Shinji. He in return gave an exasperated expression, as in what he should say to the boy. Dr. Evans quietly mouthed "anything." With that, he turned to Shinji.  
  
"Pilot Ikari, my name is Commander Takihiro. I believe you requested to see me."  
  
Shinji did not respond, but turned his head to the side as he began to blush in embarrassment. Dr. Evans looked at Takihiro in anger, and quickly turned to Shinji.  
  
"Shinji, this is Commander Takihiro. I believe he was the one you mistook for Kaji. Perhaps if you told me more, I could run through the list of the original Nerv crew. There might be some more information as to what happened to him."  
  
He did not reply. Takihiro, who was used to getting results, began to find the boy annoying and petty. He had to get something out of the boy, especially if they were going to live together.  
  
"Shinji," Takihiro said. "You and I will be living together as soon as tomorrow. But if you are going to live with me, then I am going to let you know that your attitude will not be allowed in my home, nor in my command. When you are spoken to by an officer of Nerv, you will respond appropriately. I will not take any of this sentimental, 'I am shy, please forgive me if I'm the new guy', crap. You are not here as a visitor, you are here as a member of an elite team of mech pilots and fighters. So none of that 'I can not answer you because I might get emotionally hurt'. Is that understood, Ikari?"  
  
Shinji looked up in surprise. He had not been talked to that way since Misato.  
  
"Ikari, do you understand?" Takihiro repeated.  
  
"Yes. Yes, I do."  
  
"Then tomorrow morning you will present yourself for briefings, reviews, and training. The rest of the day, today, you will use it to recuperate as best as possible. There will be no more additional delays. Ikari, you are dismissed."  
  
Takihiro turned to the table and began to work, with Kadena and Tenku immediately following. Dr. Evans led Shinji out of the room, who did not say anything, but simply walked straight thinking about what had just happened, and about what would happen tomorrow.  
  
=====  
  
"Crude," Commander Evans said. "But it seemed to work. But if that is what it takes to get that boy back into piloting, then there will be no other recourse."  
  
Commander Ikari did not answer, but simply watched another playback between the Tactical Commander and the pilot. After it was done playing, he turned it off.  
  
"You know," Evan said, "the return of Unit 01 has began its own ripple effect."  
  
"Yes. Soon they will try to take it, or take it back."  
  
=====  
  
"I know why you are here."  
  
He did not raise to welcome him, but rather signaled for him to sit.  
  
"How long have you know about this?" He asked as he took a sit.  
  
"As early as you did."  
  
Vlad moved aside his cloak, revealing his full military regalia, labeling him Khan. But Bjorn was little impressed by this. He had grown tired of the Wolf's display of aggressiveness and their attempts at making themselves look more powerful than what they really were.  
  
"Tell me this, Khan. What does your IlKhan Kerensky say about this?"  
  
As Khan Jorgensson spoke the name 'Kerensky', he spoke with respect. No Clan member would dare utter the name of their most precious father without respect or humility. Only freebirths would dare speak the name as if it were one of their common, badly-spoken, words.  
  
"He agrees that we try to bring it where it belongs, with us."  
  
"We cannot simply enter the Inner Sphere with trinaries and reclaim something lost for centuries. I believe something a little more discreet can be used."  
  
"I grow tired of discretion. I cannot wait until the Wolf Clan is ready to bring down House Steiner once this truce is over. My people salivate with the idea of annihilating such corruption. And this item will help us get there."  
  
Khan Jorgensson listened quietly, for in his heart too, beat the heart of a predator. Inside, beat the heart of a Ghost Bear.  
  
=====  
  
"Where was it heading?"  
  
"In its trajectory, it was Terra."  
  
"Then it is true."  
  
She took a long breath, taking the news that for so long they had all been waiting for. If it was true, then perhaps their oldest writings would finally come to pass. And they would be the ones to accomplish them. Not being able to contain herself, she got off her seat and walked to one of the view ports. The emptiness of space was breathtaking, but the addition of their Battlecruiser made the painting indescribable. The excitement turned her cold, so she went back to her seat, and got her coat. But before she put it on, she looked at the patches. For long those two patches had represented everything she had dreamt of and become. In her lifetime, perhaps, she could finally make a change for them all. She lovingly looked at them once more.  
  
Minnesota 331  
  
And on the other side.  
  
A Terran Wolverine.  
  
=====  
  
It knew the time to wake up was soon, but it had to wait. If it meant to bring it back, it would need its full strength. Meanwhile, it slept. 


	7. Genesis 0:7

I don't own anything here...  
"MAGI system is now online, doctor."  
  
"Very good. Now we just have to wait for the boy."  
  
=====  
  
The suit itself was oversized, but once he pressed the button in the wrist it quickly shrunk down to his exact size. That would be his only clothing for as long as the test lasted. The more he thought about the suit, the more memories came back. He looked at the adjoining lockers and remembered Kaworu. The more he thought about him, the more lonesome he felt. The pain simply proved too much for Shinji. He sat and wept.  
  
She sat next to him. Not knowing how to respond, she simply stayed quiet. She detested seeing him like that. It even made her mad. But for now, she sat next to him, helpless, just like him.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said. "I know you hate it when you see me like this."  
  
She did not answer; she was, simply, too upset.  
  
"Well, I'm going to go now."  
  
He stood up and began to walk towards the door.  
  
"Shinji," she called after him.  
  
She walked to him and stared eye to eye. And before Shinji knew it, she slapped him.  
  
"Baka! Don't bring me back if you continue being this way! Sich hineindenken!"  
  
He held his right cheek. Underneath the pain, he felt the warmth of blood collecting in his bruised cheek. They, again, looked at each other. She had bared her teeth in anger, and hyperventilated with anxiety. He could not move, so she reacted. She snorted and walked out the door. He stood for a second, collecting his thoughts, but decided, before long, to move.  
  
As he stepped out the door, she was no longer there.  
  
=====  
  
"That isn't standard mech pilot uniform."  
  
"It's what the pilot will wear as his uniform. It's very basic fiberized plastic, and will not pollute the plug's interior, nor the LCL."  
  
Takihiro was not convinced or impressed. To him, everyone, with no exceptions, had to follow Nerv regulations regarding safety and procedures. The introduction of a new mech might have excited everyone, but to him a mech was still a mech. And if this mech was planned to be used in military advances and tactics, then he wanted everything about it to represent his command. From the emblems on the mech, to the pilot's uniform.  
  
"Let's just get this over with."  
  
"Very well," Dr. Evans answered. "But pay attention to everything I do and say. Once you are given command over the mech, I will not repeat myself."  
  
He did not bother answering but rather looked on at the monitor. He stood behind his three officers, each in their corresponding seats, in the Main Tactics Rooms. Next to him stood Dr. Evans, and behind them all, one level above, sat Commander Gendou with Sub-Commander Evans standing next to him. In the lower levels, officers and technicians moved around performing their assigned tasks. And in front of them all, stood, both, the 3-dimensional topographical map and the immense monitor that would receive transmitted images from satellite uplinks, fighters, and mechs.  
  
"Commanders," Dr. Evans addressed them. "We are about to proceed with mech re-activation. Is there reason not to proceed?"  
  
"None at all," responded the Sub-Commander. "Proceed as planned."  
  
"Begin synch test."  
  
Yuri checked her monitor and began typing furiously, trying to keep up with the incoming information.  
  
"Connection Editors have began! Synch ratio is at 53% and rising!"  
  
"If it reaches 85%, begin delaying the signal. Under no circumstances must we let it pass 99.99%!"  
  
"It's beginning to slow down! Final synch ratio at 78%"  
  
"Give the pilot visual access."  
  
"Roger that."  
  
She sighed with relief. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened with re- activation. Now would begin the hardest part, seeing if the pilot was able to stand the rigors of battle... today. She turned to Takihiro, who return an unreadable stare. She replied by turning around and giving the order.  
  
"Launch Unit 01!"  
  
=====  
  
He sat inside the plug, simply looking at its cylindrical walls. The familiar taste of LCL filled his mouth, throat, and lungs. He opened his mouth, and he felt a small eruption in his throat, then move around his mouth and by his lips. He followed the air pocket as it slowly left his mouth and floated to the cold ceiling.  
  
The plug, itself, was dark, but once the order was given for pilot visual the front wall of the plug began to shine, and after a couple of seconds, became transparent. Shinji was now looking through the plug, outside of the mech. But instead of looking at the dock outside, as his mech was slowly moved from one point to another, Shinji kept staring at the bubble above him for a couple of seconds, until the order came.  
  
"Launch Unit 01!"  
  
And the bubble burst.  
  
=====  
  
Unit 01 was mounted on a platform. When the order was given to launch, the platform began to accelerate at an immense speed, until it reached 75 mph under 5 seconds. Shinji felt the all familiar pressure upon his chest and face. But unlike before, the pressure was not coming from above, it was coming from the front. To him, it meant, that he was not moving up the building to the top, like the original platform, but to the front.  
  
"We're not underground," he thought. "If we're attacked."  
  
He did not finish the sentence as the mech had suddenly stopped, and Shinji found himself outside in midday.  
  
=====  
  
"Unit 01 has been deployed," announced Tenku, "and is exited through cage exit number 05. It is standing in Training Field 2."  
  
"Static defenses are in stand-by," said Kadena. "Mech drones are ready for deployment."  
  
"How's the pilot?" Asked Dr. Evans.  
  
"Heartbeat beating steadily, along with synch ratio," responded Yuri.  
  
"Then," said Dr. Evans as she turned to Takihiro. "It's all yours."  
  
Takihiro nodded in agreement and turned to the Commanders. Commander Ikari did not turn to look at Takihiro, but Sub-Commander nodded in agreement as well. Immediately, Takihiro turned to the matter at hand.  
  
"Shinji, this is Commander Takihiro. You passed the synch ratio test and there are no anomalies detected at the present time. Is that understood?"  
  
A feeble "Yes" was heard through out the room in response.  
  
"Now we will begin basic mech training in order to accommodate you for battle. But first I need you to walk 200 yards to you right side."  
  
Everyone held their breath as the mech detached itself from the platform, and because of its weight, seemed to slump a bit. But it finally began to walk, slowly. It's movement was very fluid and in arches, unlike the boxier mechs whose movements were usually measured and repetitive. So smooth was Unit 01's walk, that the only way some recognized it as a mech was by the thundering sound of its footsteps. Otherwise, many would have had believed that what was walking out there was not a machine, but rather a living being. And the more Takihiro looked at it, the more he realized that it wasn't the pilot alone whom he had to take care of, but also a living giant.  
  
After the 200 yards, it stopped.  
  
"Good. Now we'll move to simplified targeting. Since we, at the moment, do not have handheld weaponry, we have decided to use the lance, which you brought, as your primary weapon of practice until more advanced weaponry can be brought in."  
  
A smaller platform carrying the lance pointing upwards sprung from the ground, next to the mech.  
  
=====  
  
Shinji stared at the lance. It was red, with two throngs intertwined in the middle creating the long handle. In its entirety, the lance stood twice as tall as the mech.  
  
He began to close his hand around the mech, when out of nowhere, the memories began. 


	8. Genesis 0:8

I don't own anything here...  
All five sat in the third row. Sitting any closer to the holo-vid was prone to injure the retina because of the lasers that produced the 3-dimensional video.  
  
"...that's the exit where Unit 01 was launched from, and its entrance to TF2."  
  
Kadena had frozen the video on the frame where Unit 01 had reached the training field.  
  
"After that," he continued, "Unit 01 and the pilot began following orders by walking the eastbound 200 yards. No problems, either mechanically or physiological, were detected. Simple training routines until Unit 01 was ordered to pick up the lance. Immediately after obtaining the lance, traces of erratic behavior were displayed by the mech. Contact with the pilot was lost during the elapsed time."  
  
The video began to playback.  
  
=====  
  
"Good," Takihiro said. "Now, if you notice around you there are five turrets. And behind those turrets stand ready five armed mechs. Don't worry, they are loaded with blanks. The only thing you should be, a little, concerned about are the lasers, which cannot be downsized anymore, and should we, they would be useless. Now, if you're ready, field testing will begin in 5."  
  
Yuri turned to her console and began reading numbers.  
  
"4."  
  
She began typing quickly trying to keep the numbers under control.  
  
"3."  
  
Not being able to, she called Dr. Evans to her side.  
  
"2."  
  
Dr. Evans looked at the numbers and tried blocking the numbers as well.  
  
"1."  
  
She immediately turned around  
  
"Begin firing!"  
  
"Stop the test!"  
  
=====  
  
All five mechs began moving around the turrets. Giant in size and deadly in its weaponry, man's greatest achievement technologically was seen in the walking fortress known as the mech. Standing as small as 10 meters and as immense as 20, with weights varying from 20 to 100 tons, these machines were able to carry out a payload large enough to destroy entire cities by themselves. Around Unit 01 stood five of these technological wonders, 3 Bushwackers and 2 Sunders.  
  
The Bushwackers stood at 12 meters and weighing 55 tons, while the Sunder stands at 15 meters and an impressive 90 tons. Both had been introduced during Operation Bulldog, the mission whose primary directive was to annihilate Clan Smoke Jaguar. After a successful run, during the operation, and in the Trial of Refusal, both mechs were quickly acquired by more factions of the Inner Sphere. And due to being relatively new designs, both were found to be present in any company and were relatively cheap to repair and maintain.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" Takihiro yelled back.  
  
"Stop the test! The synch ration is too high!"  
  
"Kadena," Takihiro said to his officer. "Stop the tests."  
  
"Sir," he responded. "The mechs and turrets have already opened fire."  
  
Everyone turned to the monitor as they saw one of the Sunders stop and fire its Large Laser. It seemed to travel in slow motion to everyone. It seemed to take hours before the concentrated beam of light finally reached its target and, to everyone's amazement, deflected at an sharp angle.  
  
"What in the..." Tenku whispered as he saw Unit 01 stretch itself rigidly, grab its head, in pain, open its mouth and roared.  
  
Unit 01 picked up the lance and in one swift move threw it at the Sunder. It was a perfect shot as it landed right in the middle of the Sunder's torso, penetrating the engine. The mech exploded in a giant fireball, swallowing the turret next to it. The remaining mechs continued firing their deadly arsenal, but to no avail. All shots were immediately deflected.  
  
"How does it do that?" Takihiro asked.  
  
"It's..." Dr. Evans answered in disbelief. "It's an A.T. Field."  
  
"A what?"  
  
They could not finish as Unit 01 roared again and began running towards a Bushwacker. Unit 01 lumbered over the Bushwacker, the difference clearly seen when Unit 01 pushed it to the floor and began pounding with both fists. Both of the Bushwackers arms were torn from its body and thrown aside, as Unit 01 began tearing the torso apart. It scavenged through the wreck, throwing pieces to the side as it reached deeper and deeper into the delicate center.  
  
"Have remaining mechs retreat!" Takihiro ordered.  
  
Kadena began typing orders immediately, and the mechs responded by walking backwards, in retreat formation, then turning around and running at full speed.  
  
"Use the turrets to distract Unit 01!"  
  
All four turrets began to fire, but it was useless. All shots were still being deflected while Unit 01 continued pounding and ripping apart the Bushwacker. Both the remains and Unit 01 were now completely covered in hydraulic liquids and flushing coolants. The mixture of both liquids gave the appearance of blood, giving the scene a more eerie atmosphere. Finally, Unit 01 roared, grabbed the cockpit, tore it away from Bushwacker's carcass and crushed it.  
  
Everyone looked in awe as Unit 01 slowly stood up, turned around and walked back to the platform.  
  
"What the hell did the pilot do?" Takihiro screamed at Dr. Evans. "That's how it fights? It completely destroyed two mechs without any armament! Kadena, have the pilot report back to me immediately!"  
  
Takihiro stormed off, as behind him, Unit 01 was dragged back.  
  
=====  
  
"Of course," Dr. Evans said. "The pilot was unconscious."  
  
"It doesn't make sense," Commander Evans said. "In the original report, during such outbursts, the pilot was, during different cases, either awake or asleep. We have no idea yet what could trigger the A.T. Field, and the mech behaving in such a manner. Could the pilot do it voluntarily?"  
  
Commander Evans and Dr. Evans were both in Commander Ikari's office going over the test report.  
  
"And what do you think really happened?" Asked Ikari.  
  
"I think Unit 01 was after as S2 organ." Responded Daniella.  
  
"That's impossible," said Evans. "Why would Unit 01 try to eat an S2 organ? If Adam and Unit 01 are one, then why the need to?"  
  
"This could have been answered a long time ago if we hadn't lost the original Nerv files." Said Daniella frustrated.  
  
"Even so," said Gendou. "Just the fact that Unit 01seeks an S2 organ, makes it an obstacle on our path. We must get rid of it before Seele thinks of including it in its plans."  
  
"Does that include the pilot?" Asked Evans.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"But hold on a second," said Daniella. "If Unit 01 seeks an S2 organ, wouldn't the Angels look for Adam?"  
  
"We don't think the Angels were looking for Adam, at all." Said Evans.  
  
"Then what were they looking for?" Asked Daniella.  
  
=====  
  
"How is he?" Takihiro asked.  
  
"Simply exhausted." Answered Yuri. "Besides that, he's in great shape."  
  
Takihiro ran his hands across his hair. It had finally dawned on him what the new mech was capable of. The military advantages would be great over any technology developed, whether from Inner Sphere or Clan. But the violent display was like nothing he'd ever seen. It was not self-defense what the pilot, Ikari, had done, it was horrendous. If a pilot would have been inside the mech, then it would have been considered murder. And that was something, Takihiro, would not allow within the organization. Now while he was still Commander.  
  
"Tenku," He called on one of the comm-link monitors.  
  
"Yes, sir?"  
  
"Have a report ready in 10 minutes. I'm going to see the Commanders about this. I think it's time I start asking questions, like if I really cared for my job."  
  
"Yes, sir." 


	9. Genesis 0:9

I don't own anything here...  
"I'm not asking for much. I'm simply asking to be kept informed of anything that concerns my duties towards the pilots, Nerv, and the welfare of Terra in general."  
  
"And is not what you have enough?"  
  
"With all due respect, sir. You authorized the use of Unit 01 for field- testing and repairs, but I feel, as my duty, that I know exactly what the purpose of the mech is, and its pilot. I need to know what am I training the mech for, and under what conditions. I need to know against whom will it be going against, so that I may prepare properly."  
  
"True. Of course, you know, now, that it will not be going against other mechs. The mech, by itself, can easily destroy a lance. Maybe, even, an entire company?"  
  
"Tell me something, Commander. What would you do with such a mech?"  
  
"The military use of such technology is limitless. Of course, I talk to you as a soldier. As a Tactical Commander. But as a Training Director, I must see that every pilot follows the Star League's Twelve Principles of Command. Reason why I cannot see myself in use of such unit."  
  
"And as a soldier? Whom would you use it against?"  
  
"Everyone that knows of Nerv's existence knows that its purpose lies in secrecy. Within that purpose, lies Terra's keeping. It would be to our advantage to use it in Terra's defense."  
  
"But under whose command? Under Primus Mori and Comstar? Maybe Word of Blake? Or perhaps in 20 years, under control of the Clans?"  
  
"Nerv does not follow the current reigning power, Commander."  
  
"I believe, sir, that perhaps we are getting off track. I know real well what Nerv is suppose to do. But my question remains as to what am I suppose to do with Unit 01."  
  
"Unit 01 has everything to do with Nerv's purpose, Commander. Maybe if you would listen more closely, you will be able to pick up what we are trying to do with Unit 01 and the pilot."  
  
"Commander, do you believe in God?"  
  
=====  
  
"And in what direction do I walk in?"  
  
"I think it's 4 to 5 kilometers south-west. I'm sure you will not miss it."  
  
"Thank you for you kindness."  
  
"No problem," said the driver. "Good luck."  
  
He waved until the truck disappeared in the distance. He looked to the sun, as much as he could, and took a deep breath. After so many years in the ships, it was good to walk in something that had an atmosphere, and even better the fact that Terra had such beautiful sunsets. He would've never imagined something like that. The colors it displayed, as it turned from yellow, to orange, to red, and finally to the beautiful dark blue of infinite space. Maybe that was the reason for so much warfare. Maybe some leader, somewhere, simply wanted to stare, once, at Terra's sunset.  
  
As he walked by, it heard a rustling in one of the trees. He immediately got down, and waited. But to his surprise, a squirrel scurried by, returning to its nest. He got up, laughed at his own nervousness, and resumed his trajectory. Ever since arriving at the ports, he had been nervous. Terra was known to be, besides beautiful and mankind's birthplace, a haven to undercover agents, snitches, and information sellers. He had already been approached by several of these, willing to sell the newest secrets for the lowest credits. It would've made his job much easier to simply buy the information he needed, but what restrained him was the fact that as willing as information sellers were to sell their secrets, they, too, were willing to sell the names and descriptions of those to whom information was sold to. And because of his precautionary attitude, he now found himself walking 5 kilometers to a spot that did not exist in a map.  
  
The wind began to pick up, so he got out his jacket from his knapsack. And it got colder as the terrain became steeper, and his breathing became more labored. But he still pressed on. There would be no way that he would not enjoy his time on Terra, he kept reminding himself. But as he as the ground became more leveled, he was engulfed in a thick mist. He reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a pair of dark glasses. He put them on, and activated them. From dark they turned a greenish tint, similar to a neuro- helmet, including a direction display with small-radius radar. It also gave him limited visibility in the dark, but because of the thick mist, all of the instruments were useless. And as he removed them, it also began to rain.  
  
He quickly run to a nearby rock outcrop, as it would give him the best cover against the rain and, just in case, lightning. As he sat down underneath the rock covers, he began to feel the cold creep beneath his skin and touch his bones. Rain, itself, did not bother him, but he did try to avoid it. There was no point in getting wet uselessly. But when he looked out, he noticed that the fog had dissipated. So he made a decision, and quickly began to run across the rain.  
  
He, again, put on the dark glasses, activated them, and was finally able to use them. The moment he turned them on, he jumped to avoid an elevated root. He landed perfectly, and continued running. He applied pressure on the right lens, and a NAV point appeared. He checked the radar displayed, announcing only one third of a kilometer left. Knowing he had made good time, he continued to apply himself on the run.  
  
He was searching for the preset NAV point, which represented one of Terra's large craters. Located 45 kilometers from Tokyo-5, these ancient craters were restricted to the public, and were sanctioned natural reserves after developers lobbied to start construction on that area. In particular, he was looking for an area, inside the crater, that had once belonged to Tokyo- 3. It was characterized by ancient building remains, and the lake Oniyusha completely covering the crater and buildings, and as he turned a large hill, he saw it.  
  
He did not continue any further, but stopped and looked around for cover. He found a deep crevice in the hill, but not much of a cave. For the moment, it would have to do as he began to work. From his bag, he took a scope lens and clipped it to his glasses. A screen opened up, giving him various settings. He selected one and a "PROCESSING" window appeared. After it was done, the screen went pitch black, but after a couple of seconds, it came back on, but instead of the usual green HUD, a red one became clear, with everything covered in wireframe. He looked towards the lake, but it was no longer there. In what was suppose to be its depths, stood several buildings surrounding training fields. In the middle of it all, stood, like a master, a towering building, overlooking everything that happened within its theater of operations.  
  
He zoomed in into the area's perimeters. They might have used the holographic lake to confuse everyone, but obviously they were not taking chances. Motion sensors, with anti-air towers every few kilometers, and every other kilometer was guarded by patrolling armored vehicles, surrounded the area limits. But as he looked closer between the towers, he noticed the camouflaged mechs. He saw some really heavy artillery by using precious assault mechs as their first line of defense. He immediately recognized the soft curves of the Annihilators. In between them, stood a strange mech he could not recognize, though it looked familiar. It carried the basic Timberwolf leg design, but the torso, and the rest of the upper body, was nothing like he had ever seen before. After some thought, he remembered and smiled. He was looking at the new Inner Sphere Avatars. Therefore, it had been true that the designers could not make the Avatar walk by itself, but had to take Clan designs.  
  
He noticed sudden movement around the largest building, so he zoomed in to expect it. Several transport vehicles were loaded with rather large equipment. As he examined the cargo, since it was too big to cover, he defined them as weaponry, but it wasn't regular mech weaponry. There were axes, which had been used before by other mechs, but also knives, and a large red lance, but the ballistic weaponry did not have attachments for critical allocation spaces, but rather triggers. It looked like they had a mech with advance had actuators that could carry and fire weaponry. Through his gaze, passed machine guns, lasers, missile launchers. All hand-held. But to his surprise, the last truck carried what had become every mech pilot's weapon of choice, when it came to sniper duty. The truck carried a Gauss Rifle.  
  
He kept watch for another two hours, but nothing worth attending to occurred. Having nothing to keep his mind occupied, he began thinking about good cover. The hole on the hill was large enough to give cover and protection from the elements, so it would suffice. He unfolded a thermal sleeping bag, turned the knapsack into a pillow, and as dawned approached, he closed his eyes and rested.  
  
=====  
  
She sat down.  
  
"And what would you like to drink?" The waiter asked.  
  
"I believe it is good to follow old traditions," she remarked. "I will have some green tea."  
  
"Ah," exclaimed the waiter. "It is nice to see someone follow so old a custom as this one. I will have our very best be brought forth."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
He smiled and left. And now, she was able to concentrate on her paperwork. She picked up the folder, opened it, and was about to turn the page when something pushed her from behind, making her loose the papers and folder. She quickly turned around in anger, just to find a young man, embarrassed trying to apologize.  
  
"Please," he said. "forgive me if I hurt you."  
  
He looked down on the papers, and immediately began picking them up.  
  
"No! Leave them!" She reprimanded him.  
  
"I'm sorry about that," he continued rambling.  
  
"Please, just. just leave it as is."  
  
He nodded in agreement and handed her everything. He bowed once in apology and left. She looked after him, still in anger. But she changed her tone once the waiter came back with her drink.  
  
And soon she forgot about the incident, and concentrated on more important things.  
  
. 


	10. Genesis 1:0

I don't own anything here...  
"Have there been any transmissions?"  
  
"None at all. It looks like he's taking everything by memory," Kadena said.  
  
"And he hasn't moved around us?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Then he's not checking us out. He's waiting for something from within here." Takihiro turned to Sub-Commander Evans. "He's probably waiting for Unit 01."  
  
"Most probably," Evans agreed.  
  
Two days ago, around 4 in the morning, they had detected the intruder enter the preservation area. Instead of quick apprehension, Takihiro had decided to check the intruder to see exactly what he was searching for, and whom was he working for. But there had been no apparent transmissions.  
  
"Tenku."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
"Have a squad secure the area, check for unfriendlies, and apprehend the suspect. But have them do it while he rests. He might turn out to be one of those suicidal religious freaks."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
"They certainly took their time in getting here," said Evans.  
  
"Yeah," responded Takihiro. "They sure did. But now they are here, and we have to act accordingly."  
  
"What are you going to do?"  
  
"I'm going to interrogate him, and I'm going to keep everyone inside Nerv. Make sure no one is approached more than necessary."  
  
Takihiro turned to one of the terminals and began to type the order. While he was at it, he turned to Yuri.  
  
"I'm sorry Yuri, but no more tea outings, is that clear?"  
  
"Yes, sir." She sighed.  
  
=====  
  
"And you don't remember anything else?" Dr. Evan asked as she finished scanning Shinji.  
  
"No," he answered with his head bowed.  
  
Dr. Evans had tried everything to control Shinji's sudden bouts of depression, but to no avail. She had hypothesized that link between Unit 01 and Shinji had incurred the short transmission of serotonin from the brain to the nervous system, but the response from Unit 01 to Shinji required more of an alert pose from the pilot in order to active the mech. So, probably, Shinji's depression was caused from a mixture of stress and trauma. His unwillingness to participate made his depression even more severe.  
  
"Shinji," she said as she rubbed her temples trying to subdue a migraine. "You know you are not like any of us. Within you there's a gift that enables you to do something which cannot be humanly done. Unfortunately, everyone has realized that, and now there is no way you can go back to being a normal person. So, it would be better if you get used to the idea that what you do best, you will probably have to do for the rest of your life."  
  
He did not answer, but started to cry silently. Dr. Evans did not move, but rather let him cry in peace, but within her, the need to comfort him was great. But her military lifestyle won over and she restrained herself.  
  
"Shinji."  
  
Dr. Evans was startled by the sound of someone's voice. She was alone with Shinji in the Exam room, and had not requested anyone's aid. She turned around to see who had spoken, and to her surprise a woman, about Dr. Evan's age, 29, walked up to them. She was wearing a short brown dress, with a red jacket. She had long black hair, and beautiful purplish eyes. Around her neck she wore a silver cross.  
  
"Who are you? How did you get in here?"  
  
"I'm sorry," the woman bowed.  
  
"Dr. Evans," Shinji said. "Please, I let her in. I brought her here."  
  
"How? No one can get inside the building without a permit pass?"  
  
"I'm in the room, Dr. Evans," said Misato, "because Shinji wants me to be here."  
  
"And who exactly are you?"  
  
"Again, I'm sorry for being rude. I'm Misato Katsuragi and I am Nerv's Chief of Operations."  
  
=====  
  
They silently moved down the hill. Each step was carefully taken as they passed below branches and above roots and fallen leaves. Their dark clothing concealed them perfectly in the dark, but the goggles allowed to them to see in it.  
  
One of them made a signal to stop, and the other six followed suit. Watching his target, the leader mentioned to three to spread out. One of them went uphill to get a better view, and the other two moved several yards away. After the three were situated, the leader asked for a signal to proceed from the one on the hill. Once he received one, the remaining four walked slow and stealthy towards the target. Slowly approaching it, two of them walked to its die, while two came straight on.  
  
The man slept on his side, so, with a cue, one of them kicked both arms, sending them to the ground. Immediately, both of who were on his side, kneeled on both arms, pinning him.  
  
"Don't move," one of them said pushing the barrel of his rifle against the man's head. "Or I'll blow your head off."  
  
He signaled to the ones on the man's side, and they grabbed him, stood him up, and spread his legs. The other one began to check the man's pockets, arms and legs for weapons. Finding none, they kicked him behind the knee, making him drop. They got restraints and applied it to his wrists and ankles, and a hood on top of his head, blinding him. Once he was secured, they picked him up again and led him back to the point where they started. The leader made signal to the remaining three. One of them began packing all of the man's possessions into the knapsack, picked it up and carried it away. The other two began walking backwards, careful in their step, and covering any tracks they left behind.  
  
Once they were gone, the hill was empty, and behind it shimmered lake Oniyusha.  
  
=====  
  
"We have him, Commander." Tenku said.  
  
"Have him taken to the lower cells. I don't want anything in that cell that can be used as a weapon. I'm going down there to interrogate"  
  
"Roger that."  
  
Takihiro walked out of the Main Tactics Room and headed for the elevator. To him, now the pressure was on. Not only would he have to deal with the Mech and the pilot, but also with intruders, and those keen on possessing Unit 01. The man's capture meant that the interested force would have to begin covering its tracks, or, if it was truly interested, try again in acquiring it. But if the man did not talk, then everyone was a suspect.  
  
The meeting with the Commanders had resulted in a brief, but extensive, history lesson on Nerv and its relationship with Unit 01. According to them, Unit 01's existence had been known about even before Kerensky's exodus, but had been delayed because of the Stefan Amaris occupation of Terra. Preparations began immediately afterwards, but even more delays were constantly being brought on by squabbles between the Great Houses. After great consideration, Seele convinced Blake to make Nerv an independent entity, within Terra, whose only purpose was to preserve Terra's historical, religious, and past scientific achievements until the second millennium. By then, Kerensky had already departed for unknown territory, taking, with him, knowledge of Nerv and the existence of Unit 01. Not knowing if Kerensky would come back, Seele urged Blake to keep Nerv secret from the Great Houses, keeping its existence known only to him and Comstar.  
  
Even stranger was Nerv's creation and apparent destruction. According to historical sources, in 2014, the destruction of Asia had been caused by Russia, during its Second Civil War, when its satellite states had decided to free themselves from the U.S.S.R. Reports stated that Russia had sent troops to calm the rebelling nations, but they had responded by bombing the troops while on their way. Russia had apparently responded back by dropping nuclear weapons on its nations. But according to Nerv, it was the Unit 01 itself which had caused the nuclear holocaust.  
  
Nerv had been created in the year 2000, right after the Antarctic Meteor Crash. A meteor had apparently crashed on Antarctica, melting it, and flooding almost a third of Terra's landmasses, but in reality Nerv had uncovered some kind of powerful being called, conveniently, an "Angel." Most of the records had been lost as to what the Angels were, and exactly how the "Third Impact" came about. Third Impact, of course, was the name given to Unit 01 causing the destruction of almost of third of humanity, and Nerv itself, including its staff. But by then, more Evas, which was the name given to Unit 01 and other units, had been created in order to respond to threats unbeknownst to humanity, but were actually more of the Angels.  
  
Now, as Takihiro waited in the elevator, he pondered upon figuring out who would possess such a weapon as the Eva. He had to find out soon, because if one faction knew, then it was a fact that the others, Clan, Comstar, and Word of Blake, knew as well.  
  
"Commander Takihiro, please contact Dr. Evans. Commander Takihiro, please contact Dr. Evans. Commander Takihiro."  
  
He picked up the elevator's phone and asked for Dr. Evan's extension. After a couple of seconds, they connected.  
  
"Yeah, what is it?"  
  
"I'm in the elevator. We captured the guy lurking outside. I'm on my way to see him."  
  
"I'm on level B1. Why?"  
  
"Well, how long are you going to take to get here?"  
  
"Okay."  
  
Takihiro pressed the STOP button. The doors opened and he stepped out. Daniella had asked him to wait for her at the current floor. Having a few seconds to rest, he walked to one of the counters and served himself coffee. While he drank, he thought about Daniella's tone of voice. She was agitated and excited. Whatever it was she had wanted to show him was extremely important.  
  
He looked at the elevator read out. One of them was coming down, so he stepped to the side in case she came out in a hurry. Immediately, the bell announcing the elevator rang, and the doors opened. Out stepped Daniella with a wild expression on her face.  
  
"What's wrong?" He asked.  
  
"Takihiro," she said, her voice quivering with excitement. "I want you to meet someone."  
  
From the elevator came out Shinji, and behind him a woman.  
  
"I want you to meet Captain Misato Katsuragi. Nerv's Chief of Operations, Takihiro."  
  
Takihiro looked in confusion at the young woman. He had not been advised about any newcomers.  
  
"Takihiro, she's from Nerv," said Daniella, her lips quaking to form a laughter. "She's from the original Nerv. She's from 2014."  
  
Then he understood. 


	11. Genesis 1:1

I don't own anything here...  
Takihiro stood aside. Daniella and Misato stood in front Commander Ikari's desk, while Sub-Commander Evans stood next to him. They had all been gathered in Ikari's office after Daniella announced the arrival of Misato, following the Commander's orders. The sudden appearance of so shadowy a character, prompted Takihiro to keep her away from the rest of the staff. Reason why they had decided to have the impromptu meeting the same day, two hours after Takihiro, himself, had met Misato.  
  
So far they had all remained quiet as Misato explained her sudden arrival through Shinji, as well as the properties explaining Shinji's survivability. Also, several questions were answered when she went into detail concerning Unit 01 and the Third Impact. And though they all had different thoughts about Misato's story, Takihiro, still, held his doubts.  
  
"I know it may seem impossible," Misato continued, "but the fact remains that Shinji, once he assimilated with Unit 01, synchronized beyond 400%. We have no idea how far he's able to go as of this moment."  
  
"What's most amazing," said Commander Evans, "is that Seele still believes in using the Human Instrumentality Project. I thought that when time passed, and their essence assimilated with the terminal systems, they would begin to use the system's processing system."  
  
"I wish it was that simple," said Daniella. "But the reconstruction of Magi also included the implementation of both Seele and the three computers."  
  
"Right," said Misato. "Before, Magi was separated into three systems: Balthasar, Melchior and Casper. The three of them ran Magi and Nerv, but Drs. Akagi, mother and daughter, the women who created the system, made sure that each computer ran independent of each other. Also, each one of the systems ran differently. One ran as the processing unit of a mother. Another ran as the processing unit of a woman. And the last ran as the processing unit of a scientist. The three were the same, but thought differently, ensuring close to 100% accuracy when it came to decision making."  
  
"The problem now is," said Daniella, "that the three computers will run the same as before, but with Seele programmed into them, there will be a power struggle between the two. One will try to follow the original Magi's way of thinking, while another will try to decide in favor of Seele."  
  
"And what Seele doesn't realize is that, though Unit 01 was the Eva that caused the Third Impact, it wasn't Adam whom set it off."  
  
"This," said Ikari, "will be the missing piece in their puzzle. If they get their hands on Unit 01, nothing will occur."  
  
"Correct," said Misato. "Though they have Unit 01, who is now one with Adam, nothing will happen, because it is not Adam who pushed Unit 01 to create the impact."  
  
"Then," added Evans, "Seele will try to capture an Angel."  
  
"And try to have it assimilate with Unit 01," finished Daniella.  
  
Everyone remained silent trying to assimilate what was being said. Seele, the organization that had given birth to Nerv, for the second time, was also trying to destroy it. This meant that Seele would try to follow exactly what was had been predicted in the original Nerv in 2014, the forced evolution of man with HIP, the Human Instrumentality Project. Created in mid-1990's, Seele ardently believed that humanity had come to a standstill in the evolutionary ladder. The Committee, consisting of 12 members, and five representatives for every world power, saw it as its duty to push, either human evolution or replace it with a superior being that would be aware of its existence and purpose.  
  
"But there haven't been Angel since the Third Impact, correct?" Asked Takihiro, breaking everyone's thoughts. "Whatever caused Unit 01 to detonate was also destroyed."  
  
"You don't understand," said Misato. "Why do you believe the Angels kept attacking Nerv?"  
  
"Because you guys had Adam," responded Takihiro.  
  
"That's what Seele believes as well, but it's wrong," said Misato. "Seele never got the reports detailing everything because they were destroyed in the Third Impact. Adam, itself, was, or rather is, an Angel. Commander, do you still have Adam's taping?"  
  
Commander Evans nodded. He looked through a terminal, typed in several passwords, and began to play a video in the monitor. There was an outline of a building, almost destroyed. Metal rods stuck out like bones from a skeleton, and the wind that blew around it gave an unholy sound to the already macabre scene. The wind blew faster and harder, turning to snow. Quickly it began to accumulate on edges and platforms. But to the right, outside the building, a light began to glow. It stood still for two seconds, but it began to move in an up-and-down pattern, and before anyone could say anything, a giant humanoid glowing being walked across the screen. Immediately, the screen went static.  
  
"That was Adam," said Misato.  
  
"And that was the angel you captured?" Takihiro asked.  
  
"Yes and no," she responded. "Adam appeared a few days after we had taken Lilith. Once we had Lilith safely out, we decided to capture Adam as well, but it backfired. Hence, the Second Impact. But we were able to capture him and reduce him to an embryo form"  
  
"Also," said Daniella. "Notice that Adam in the video, though it's glowing, it's still very similar to Unit 01."  
  
"That's because we cloned the Evas from Unit 01, with the exception of Unit 00 which was cloned directly from Lilith, reason why it was the only unit allowed to go near it. I myself did not know this until much later. But at least it explains why Unit 01 did not cause the Third Impact when it merged with Adam."  
  
"Because," said Ikari, "even before that, Unit 01 and Adam were already one."  
  
"Then if Adam is an Angel," said Takihiro, "and it's merger with Unit 01 did not cause the Third Impact, then what did?"  
  
"That's the point of the entire discussion," responded Misato. "Adam was not trying to attack Seele or Nerv."  
  
"It was trying to find Lilith," continued Daniella.  
  
"And by merging with it," added Evans, "it would result in the Third Impact."  
  
"In order to teach humanity not to meddle with God's creations," said Ikari. "But since Unit 01 and Adam were already one, both Adam the clone and later the embryo, it had no problem merging with Lilith."  
  
"That's how Shinji," said Misato, "was able to bring me back."  
  
"I believe I speak for Takihiro and others, perhaps," said Evans, "when I say that I still do not understand how."  
  
"Lilith," said Daniella, "was simply not another Angel. According to several ancient customs, Lilith was denoted as the Adam's first wife, before Eve, in the Garden of Eden. She is also known as Mother Nature. She's known too, not as The Creator, but as a creator. That's why the Angels were so ardent to find her."  
  
"They wanted to find her so they could blow her up?" Takihiro asked.  
  
"No," Misato responded. "They wanted to find her because they wanted to blow us up. Lilith cannot be destroyed completely. Though the form we found her in was destroyed, it merged with Unit 01, Adam, and even Shinji."  
  
"That's how Shinji brought Misato back," Daniella said. "Because part of him is Lilith, the creator."  
  
=====  
  
"How do you deal being with who you are?"  
  
"I don't understand."  
  
"I didn't think you would. Maybe if I asked you if you knew who you really are?"  
  
"I am me."  
  
"I know. And I am Shinji, but I am also an Eva pilot, and Dr. Evans said that's who I am, and that's who I should get accustomed to be."  
  
She stayed quiet, pondering on what he said.  
  
"Does that mean if I no longer pilot Eva, do I cease to be? Am I what I do? Or am I what I want be?"  
  
"I think I am me because of the memories I hold within me. There are not many of my own, but I do hold others, which I make them dear to myself. As me, no other exists, therefore I am alone. So, if I am alone, then I must be unique. If I am unique, then I am one only. That is who I must be."  
  
"That's because you were born especial." At this, she blushed. "But what separates me from others?"  
  
"I don't know," she whispered.  
  
Both remained quiet for a couple of seconds thinking about answers, but finding only more questions.  
  
"Do you get tired of being who you are?" Shinji asked.  
  
"I don't know. I don't think so. I know no others, so how can I grow tired of myself?"  
  
"But don't you sometimes wish you could be somebody else?"  
  
Immediately her mind was filled with memories long gone. Memories of smiles and kind words. Also of anger and jealousy. But also of pain and suffering. Not being able to control them, a few tears filled her eyes.  
  
"I will go now," she said, trying hold back the tears.  
  
"I'm sorry," Shinji said, preoccupied he had bothered her. "I didn't meant to upset you, if I did."  
  
She did not answer, but simply walked away.  
  
"Rei," he whispered.  
  
=====  
  
The five walked off the shuttle carrying only handbags. They were all strong and tall. Their faces showing pure anger and hatred towards anyone that came near them. An ignorant man was unfortunate enough to cross their path, bumping against one of them. Immediately he was grabbed by the collar and pulled violently towards the stranger.  
  
"You surat free."  
  
"Neg," said another. "Let us do what must be done and leave."  
  
The man was let go and pushed aside, falling to the floor. Everyone around watched in apprehension as the man landed and bruised himself. After a few seconds, the man dusted himself, and picked himself up. But as he got up, he felt someone behind him. Immediately he turned aside, in order to avoid a conflict like with the group of five strangers. But when he turned to see who it was, his eyes fell on an immense chest. He glanced up to have two cold gray eyes stare back at him. His mouth dropped in awe as the giant of a man passed him by.  
  
"By Kerensky, these wolves have no respect for Terra," the giant said."  
  
As the giant walked by, four more, exactly like him, came out of the shuttle. The terrified man stared transfixed at such a living monstrosity. But as they walked away, he noticed that they walked in such an odd manner. That's when he realized what these five giants reminded him of: Bears. 


	12. Genesis 1:2

I don't own anything here...  
The last hit was powerful and it rocked his face to the side, blood spewing from his mouth. His right cheek began to swell, matching his now bloodied eyes and broken nose. Baked blood protruded from his nostrils and ears, and one of his eyes had swelled shut. But he was still able to think clearly.  
  
"Do you have any idea what's going to happen when the Commander gets here?" The man who punched him said. "Now, I don't want to see what he's going to do to you, and I don't think you do either. So why don't you do yourself a favor and tell us what we want to know."  
  
The man slowly raised his head with great pain, and simply stared, through his good eye, at his captor. After capture, he had been placed in a cell, with no bed, for two days without food, sustained only by water. But his military training was not to be easily diminished. Every time he was interrogated, they would shackle both his wrists and ankles, and sit him on a chair, and though the cuffs were electronically sealed closed, they were still prone to water reaching their delicate circuits. And this time the interrogator did not check thoroughly.  
  
After the last hit, he composed himself and began to rub his wet fingers against the handcuff's lining. It slowly started to peel away, exposing the delicate circuitry. Once separated, he applied pressure on the opening, trying to withdraw any water drops that remained in his fingers, until finally he felt the small drops enter the sensitive electronics.  
  
He looked at the interrogator who kept talking, annoying him more than anything else. He already had an idea as to how he would get rid of him, but the problem was the guard outside, the one beyond his reach. He started to inspect the one closest to him, trying to find something of use, but finding none in the man's belt. But as the man turned around, he noticed something on in the inside of his forearm. Upon closer inspection, he noticed it was a retractable baton.  
  
"I'm waiting for an answer," said the interrogator.  
  
He stared at his captor for a second before he grabbed him, and turned him around. Immediately, he took the baton, and in one swift move, threw it at the second guard, hitting him in the head and knocking him unconscious.  
  
"Show me where the mech bay is," he whispered as he pushed the baton against the man's throat, cutting the man's breathing.  
  
The interrogator took as deep a breath as he could and elbowed the man's ribs. He immediately let go, and was pushed away.  
  
"You're good," said the interrogator rubbing his bruised neck, "but you'll have to do better than that. Now, I'm a reasonable man, and if you beat me, I'll tell you where the mech bay is. I beat you; you tell me what I want to know. Deal?"  
  
"It is a deal," he responded. "But I want to know first where my pack is."  
  
"You see that door?" The interrogator said, pointing to one of the doors in the adjoining walkway. "Right in there. Now it's my turn to ask a question. What's your name?"  
  
"Alexis McMillan is my name."  
  
"Alexis, I'm Don Treivan," he said as ran towards Alexis, meaning to tackle him. Alexis simply moved aside and hit Don on the back of the head as he ran past him, dropping him heavily on the floor.  
  
"Now, where is the mech bay?" He asked as he pushed the baton against Don's throat.  
  
"There are 9 bays, each holding a lance," said Don gasping for air. "They all surround the building."  
  
"But where are they?"  
  
"Two floors above us. But you'll never get past that point. All mech bays are heavily guarded."  
  
"And where's the new mech. Where are you keeping it?"  
  
"It's underneath us. But if you have problems getting to our mechs, it will be impossible for you to get your hands on the new unit."  
  
"Let me worry about that," he said as he knocked Don unconscious.  
  
Alexis looked through the man's pockets until he found the release card. He passed it over the restraints on his feet, and they opened up. Undressing both himself and Don, he swapped clothing, and once he was dressed in standard military uniform, he immediately dragged the other guard's body inside the cell and locked the door. Seeing that no one had yet been alerted as to what happened, he softly walked to the door Don had pointed to. He opened it and peered inside. In one of the cabinets was placed his knapsack with all of his equipment spread out and labeled. He ignored everything with the exception of his dark glasses, the scope, and a small camera. Once he had placed everything safely inside the uniform pockets, he walked out the room and headed for an elevator.  
  
He grabbed the glasses, and on top placed the camera and scope. When he was done accommodating them one of top of the other, comfortably, he turned the glasses, the scope, which he left at its regular settings, and the put the camera on "record." He selected the floor below, and the elevator began to descend. Not wanting to be surprised by anyone, he stood next to the door, his back against the wall. Before the elevator came to a stop, he knelt before the doors opened. Once they did, and giving it a few seconds for anyone to inspect it, he quickly glanced outside. Noticing no one, he walked to the door and peered outside from side to side. To the left was a wall, and to his right, a corridor. He began crawled down the corridor trying to keep within the shadows. Midway through the corridor, the wall on his left ended and a window continued.  
  
He glanced out the window, and saw a large pool of red liquid. He kept inspecting around the pool, and noticed several walls blocking something from view. He moved further down the window and tried looking around the walls, until he noticed a long purple bent cylinder with teal highlights that ran from inside a wall into the pool. He kept moving trying to see more when something metallic came into view. The farther he moved, the more was revealed, until he realized that he was looking at a face, and the cylinder was one of its arms. And the walls were not walls at all, but restraints.  
  
Immediately, he felt a presence behind him. With one quick look as he turned around he grabbed the baton and threw it at the person. He waited for the sound of a body falling, but none came. What he heard were footsteps getting closer. He was about to pounce the stranger, when she came into view. Instantly, Alexis refrained himself, as he stared at a girl no more than fourteen, her pale complexion fitting her light bluish white hair. She was dressed in a school uniform; gray and white, making her look even paler. But what caught his attention were the girl's red eyes.  
  
"This is yours," she said handing him the baton he had thrown at her. "There is no one here. You can get up."  
  
Without hesitating, or confirming if what she had said was true, Alexis stood up. He noticed that her expression was always never changing, always without emotion. When she looked at him, she did move her eyes away, and it was him who finally turned away.  
  
"Thank you," he said.  
  
"You were sent here to investigate the return of Unit 01," she said without deviating her eyes from his. "There it is."  
  
"How do you know that is what I was here for?"  
  
"You're the only one here, and you were crawling on the floor while recording Unit 01."  
  
"True," he said embarrassed at having asked such a stupid question. "So, you will report me now, are you not?"  
  
"No," she responded. "That's not my duty. I'm here only to answer questions."  
  
"Then tell me about this mech."  
  
"This is an Eva. It is Unit 01," she said, turning to look at the mech. "Unique, and far apart from all others."  
  
"And what is it that separates it from everything else?"  
  
"Unit 01 can destroy entire worlds, if given the change."  
  
"What does that mean?" He asked, confused at having been given such a strange answer.  
  
"It means exactly what I said," shed responded turning back to him. "It has done it once, and it will do it again."  
  
"And when was this?"  
  
"This was long before your time. Even before your group was ousted into the unforgiving winds of space. Long before man had even attempted to colonize the stars, Unit 01 existed, and with its existence came destruction. Alexis, it cannot be allowed to do that once again."  
  
"How do you know my name?" He asked in shock.  
  
"You told Don your name. They also know he told you where to find the mech bay and Unit 01, and they'll be coming here soon. You must go and warn your group about Unit 01."  
  
"What about you? What will you do?"  
  
"I'm an Eva pilot, I will know what to do."  
  
"You mean you pilot this thing?"  
  
"No," she said. "I pilot Unit 00, and I will try to keep Unit 01 from destroying this world once more, as far as I am able to. Now go."  
  
He was about to turn around when he decided to ask her, "what is your name, child?"  
  
"I am Rei Ayanami."  
  
There were voices coming from the elevator, so he decided to run, knowing that he would not be so lucky again. As he hurried away, he looked back at the girl, but she was gone. He heard shouts, telling him to stop, so he immediately jumped into a room, as shots flew past him. Closing the door behind him, he started to look for anything to use a shield, but the room was bare of anything useful. He looked up and saw an air vent wide enough for him to fit in and give him some crawling space. He jumped once and released the panel. He jumped again and held the edges, making an effort to hold on, and an even bigger one as he pulled himself up.  
  
The door was kicked open, and the guards flooded the room, but he was gone.  
  
=====  
  
He slowly crawled through the narrow vents, each push exhausting him. He felt he was closer to dying with every push his body gave, but it paid off. As he turned a corner, he met a wall with a ladder, going, both, up and down. He grabbed the closest step, and with great effort pulled himself out of the vent. Now as he looked up, he noticed that the ladder went infinitely. That's when he realized a floor did not mean small four-meter walls. It meant that every floor was large enough to stack 2 mechs one top of another, resulting in about 20 to 30 meters in height. With that in mind, he took a deep breath, and began to climb.  
  
What must have felt hours to him was in reality thirty minutes. But when he had climbed the three floors, he threw himself, again, into a vent and laid still, regaining his strength. After a couple of minutes, he decided to continue, and began to crawl through the vents. Again he pushed his body to its limit, as he began to look for a mech bay. He must have spent another twenty minutes looking for something similar, and was about to give up, thinking that Don had not met his part of the bargain, when he passed a vent grill. He looked through it and found himself looking, about 40 meters away, at an Annihilator. He looked to the sides and noted the large number of armed guards. And several more were added constantly to them every few minutes.  
  
=====  
  
Captain Valdken was extremely busy organizing the incoming guards. After being notified that the intruder had escaped the sub-levels through the air- vents, it was a given that he would come to the mech bays. Guards, looking to apprehend the intruder when he exited the vent, were flooding every mech bay. So far it had not happened, but units into the vents had already been deployed. It wouldn't be long now.  
  
Valdken continued barking orders, soldiers and techs running past him, looking for their positions. He turned around and bumped against a guard.  
  
"What the hell are you doing?" He roared. "Where are you supposed to be?"  
  
"I'm sorry," said the guard trembling with fear. "I have to disengage that last mech."  
  
"Then get to it," he screamed in the man's ear.  
  
The man quickly went away, picking up tools as he went. Now, even more infuriated, Valdken began calling the other mech bays, asking if the intruder had been apprehended. Having no news, he began to look through the terminal, seeing if he had missed anything, checking that every orifice in the Main Building had been accounted for. He went through every mech bay, until it came to his. As he looked through his perimeter, he noticed that all the mechs had been disconnected. An hour ago.  
  
"No," he whispered, realizing what had just happened.  
  
He turned around. And for the last second of his life enjoyed the beautiful colors of a Particle Projection Cannon.  
  
=====  
  
He began firing, now, into the other 3 mechs, making sure no one would be allowed to use them against him. He recognized the Atlas, the Inner Sphere's pride and joy. Next to it, stood two Mad Dogs, or Vultures if called by the IS. Sadly, he aimed and fired a single shot into each of the immobile mechs' cockpits, rendering them useless. Then he turned into the bay and began firing his pulse laser's into every door by which backup could arrive.  
  
"All available units," the intercom crackled. "Intruder is in mech bay 5 and now pilots an Annihilator. Fire at will."  
  
He took a deep breath as he waited for his mech to cool down. Once it had, he fired the lasers into the hangar doors, destroying them, and allowing him to exit. He walked towards them, but did not step outside, fully. He looked to his right and noticed an Avatar slowing down, ready to fire its Long Range Missiles. Alexis immediately took aim and fired one his PPCs, hitting the Avatar the moment it fired its own missiles. The missiles were erroneously targeted, and safely flew away from him. But there was no relief. Alexis felt the impact of several shots as armor was stripped away. He looked towards the aggressor and found two Bushwackers. He took aim, but both were moving in different directions and were too quick for him to correctly target. He finally got a lock and fired at one of them, in the leg, making it fall. He was about to fire again upon the downed mech when he again felt the impact of an Autocannon. He tried not to loose his target, the downed Bushwacker, but was furiously shaken by an impact. He looked to the right, and knew that the Avatar had been the one to hit him from a distance. The downed Bushwacker was already getting up, when he noticed a Vulture ready to fire in the distance.  
  
He knew it was a lost battle. With the Bushwackers tearing away armor, and the Avatar and Mad Dog keeping him from firing correctly, Alexis knew he was a dead man. But he had to at least try to take out one of these mechs. He fired an Alpha Strike on a Bushwacker, destroying the leg. But the blast proved too much for the Annihilator and its heat sinks.  
  
"Shutting down," said the computer over the now blaring alarm.  
  
"Override," he shouted, restarting the mech immediately, but the alarm still shrieking.  
  
"Flush coolant," offered the computer, as if it staying alive was a priority to it.  
  
"Negative," he responded.  
  
He picked up speed and ran towards the other Bushwacker. He did not stop but ran so fast towards it, that he pushed it down to the floor, him falling on top. He did not try to get up, but fired an Alpha Strike. The mech did not respond. It simply blew up, swallowing the remaining Bushwacker with it.  
  
=====  
  
"Where is he?"  
  
"He ejected," Kadena reported.  
  
"Damn it!" Screamed Takihiro. "Where did he land?"  
  
"Outside the lake. By the time we find the ejection seat, he'll be long gone."  
  
Anger was making his blood boil. This had never happened before, and it would not happen again. He was going to make sure that the person responsible for this would pay.  
  
"Kadena," he barked. "Put a arrest warrant for Dr. Daniella Evans."  
  
Yuri immediately turned around at hearing that her teacher would become Nerv's prisoner.  
  
"Commander?" She asked in shock. "Under arrest? Under what charges?"  
  
"Treason." 


	13. Genesis 1:3

I don't own anything here....  
The holo-vid paused, showing Daniella seating at a cafe with a waiter next to her.  
  
"I believe it is good to follow old traditions?" Asked Takihiro as he sat down.  
  
He hugged her. After being apprehended, she had been taken to the lower level cells, and awaited questioning. But the sudden change had been too much for her, and she had broken down, now only a portion of her real self. The moment Takihiro met her in the cell, his heart moved. Feelings like those had not been revealed in a long time, and to his annoyance, he knew he would allow himself to be driven by them. Immediately, he stopped the holo-vid and ordered the guards to leave, and stay out of sight.  
  
"Dogan-chan," she said, starting to cry on his shoulder. "I am so sorry! I didn't think it would go so far! I didn't know it would come to this!"  
  
"How long have they known about this?"  
  
"Before Tukayyid, ROM had entered Nerv's terminals, acquiring knowledge of Unit 01 and the Third Impact."  
  
"And your job was to keep them informed."  
  
"Well, yes," she answered. "I have to keep them informed because my priority is Terra, Dogan-chan. But I didn't know they would send an operative inside Nerv itself. I was never informed about that."  
  
"But who do you think he was? Was he ROM?"  
  
"I don't know, maybe. Or it could've been mercenary, I don't know."  
  
"I lost two entire platoons and mech pilots, Danny."  
  
"I'm sorry, Dogan. I'm so sorry!"  
  
He held her close as she began to sob. As he stroked her hair to soothe her, he began thinking of ways to prevent these kinds of attacks. The stranger knew that, by himself, it would be impossible to enter Nerv. But, perhaps, by being brought inside by someone else, like the guards, then he would have a much better chance of making contact with Unit 01. Don, the guard that challenged the prisoner, had been suspended. But that was according to the report. Takihiro and two Nerv agents escorted Don until he reached the outside perimeter, when he handed his IDs and badges. Takihiro turned to the Main Building, but as he walked away he heard an explosion. The spot where Don had stood, outside the perimeter, had turned into a crater, with only pieces of Don's charred remains left. Immediately, Takihiro sent the two agents to investigate, but when he later received the report, it only stated that one of the mechs, during a drill, had misfired. Nothing to loose in that accident, is what Command had said after they had tried linking Don with intentionally helping escape the prisoner. But Don had many years of service with Nerv, and proven himself loyal during several occasions. But he had committed one mistake, and one mistake had been paid with his life. Takihiro knew that Daniella might befall the same fate.  
  
"Danny, You know that Treivan's death was no accident, right?" He asked her pushing her away so they would see eye to eye.  
  
"I know, Dogan! I don't want the same thing to happen to me!"  
  
"Then I need you to prove to both Commanders, Daniella, both of them, that you are not a traitor. That everything you did was for the same reason as theirs. It was to protect Terra. They will meet with Seele, and they will decide on what's going to happen to you. Both Commanders are set on their path to betraying Seele, and am I. You need to prove that by working with ComStar you had decided on the same goal. You need to convince them that your number one priority is protecting Terra."  
  
"But where do I start?"  
  
"From the beginning. Tell them everything ComStar wants to know, what they want to acquire, and for what reason--"  
  
"Dogan-chan," she said interrupting him. "Do you trust me?"  
  
He was taken aback by the sudden question. But as he thought about it, he knew he didn't. There were other emotions that he still held for her deep within him, but trust was something that had long being forgotten. And not knowing how to respond, he simply took her and hugged her. To Daniella, Takihiro's sudden rush had taken her by surprise. They had not held each other so close in years, and after a few seconds, the warmth of forgotten emotions began to reveal.  
  
She hugged him back and whispered "We know that one of your own has betrayed you and Nerv, and has sold classified information to the Clans."  
  
"Who was it?" He whispered in her ear without letting her go.  
  
And as she told him, Takihiro felt his heart jump and break as he heard how one of his most trusted had betrayed them all.  
  
=====  
  
"Once again you try to ruin us by allowing such incidents to occur, Ikari."  
  
"We were fortunate enough that the stranger did not get his hand on Unit 01. But next time we shall not be so lucky."  
  
"True. Why didn't you use Unit 01 to stop the man from escaping? Do you have any idea how long it will take to replace the destroyed lance and units? Consider yourself lucky that the generators that produce Lake Oniyusha were not damaged."  
  
"Even so, there is no use for cover anymore. Whatever faction that man belonged to, will surely come for Unit 01, and this time they will be armed and ready to take it."  
  
"You have, once again, proven yourself useless, Ikari. Tomorrow we shall proceed to take back Nerv. You know very well what your fate, and those of your personnel, will be once we possess Nerv and Unit 01."  
  
"We recommend, meanwhile, that you get yourself rid of the Eva pilot and Dr. Evans. We don't want anyone unnecessarily piloting the Eva, or a traitor training someone else to do it."  
  
Eleven of the pillars faded away, only one remaining in front of him.  
  
"Ikari, we thought that by reproducing the very best of you, we would get acceptable results. How sadly were we mistaken. Your ineptitude astounds us, Ikari. Never again will we make the same mistake, by duplicating someone as useless as you. Consider yourself discarded."  
  
With that, the last pillar faded, leaving Ikari alone.  
  
"We need to act quickly," said Evans as he walked behind Ikari.  
  
"We'll have to release your daughter and have her destroy the Seele program within Magi."  
  
"Then she is no longer guilty of treason?"  
  
"She might be," said Ikari, "but I believe we can use her effectively. After all, isn't the enemy of our enemy, our friend?  
  
=====  
  
Research Director Winbeck finalized the transfer by adding his initial, I.D., and signature. He handed the tablet to the large man and requested the same steps.  
  
"Now," Winbeck said, "I'll have to ask you a few questions and give you a bit of detail on the transportation of the mechs."  
  
"What for?" Asked the man, with a voice that sounded more like a growl than human.  
  
"Just standard procedure. I can't release them until I have verbal acknowledgment from you, as well."  
  
"Then proceed," said the man. "I have not all day."  
  
"Okay. Do you understand that by taking the mechs, you are carrying weapons of mass destruction?"  
  
The man stared at Winbeck for a couple of seconds, surprise showing in his face by being asked such an idiotic question. But finally he answered, "I do."  
  
"You, as the carrier, are solely responsible for the safety of the mechs when you refused escort from Bochum to Tokyo 5. Do you understand that?"  
  
"I do."  
  
"State your name for the record."  
  
"Odin Jorgensson."  
  
"Do you, Jorgensson, Odin, understand the Release Agreement you have just signed, as well as the questions I have just asked you?"  
  
"I have understood everything," growled the man, growing impatient.  
  
"Very well," said Winbeck, ignoring Odin's tone of voice. "The cargo is yours, and I wish the best of luck."  
  
Odin did not answer, but walked out the office and headed for the docking bay holding four wide-load Karnov choppers. Winbeck, himself, stayed and began typing the release notes and orders.  
  
New Proprietor: ComStar Research  
  
Transport: Independent Contractor - Seele Group  
  
Transport Vehicle: Karnov Heavy-Duty (4)  
  
Cert Num: 01525-A  
  
Dest Point-Contact: Terra - Tokyo 5  
  
Equipment Released:  
  
Vulture (2) - Orig Config Thor (2) - Orig Config Nova Cat (2) - Orig Config Mad Cat (2) - Orig Config Daishi (2) - Orig Config  
  
Release: Winbeck, Geoffrey, RD - Krupps Armament Works  
  
Department: New Technology Research and Development  
  
Notes: All equipment is still in their original configuration. No IS equipment has been added, only original Clan components.  
  
=====  
  
"How long has he been working outside of Nerv?" Yuri asked.  
  
"We don't know," responded Takihiro, "but ComStar thinks he might've been doing it for quite a while now."  
  
"But the Combine?" Asked Kadena. "Why would he sell information to them? You really think the Kurita House would risk loosing their seat in ComStar for Unit 01?  
  
"I think everyone is risking everything to get their hands on Unit 01," said Takihiro. "Not only do we have Seele now to worry about, but now we have one of Lords after it."  
  
"When do you suppose Theodore Kurita will try to make contact with Unit 01? Asked Tenku. "You don't think it will be after Seele has weakened us?"  
  
"Most probably," said Takihiro as he typed into one of the terminals, bringing in information about the suspect. "But whenever it is, we have to get ready. We can't have two forces attacking one right after the other. It will destroy us."  
  
"You want me to send a group to arrest him?" Asked Kadena.  
  
"No," responded Takihiro, "we'll wait a bit more to see what exactly he is transmitting. But meanwhile, I'm going to request ComGuards help in defending the base."  
  
"And the Commanders have approved?" Asked Yuri.  
  
"I have the formal request ready to go and transmit," he said as he brought up a memo into the terminal.  
  
"I'll transmit it right now," said Tenku. "It will take them two days to reach a decision. Nerv will not be able to hold on that long."  
  
"Do it now," said Takihiro. "The more time passes, the more vulnerable we become."  
  
Tenku wrote down the memo's number code and began to walk past the door, when he heard something click behind him. He turned around and saw Yuri beginning to cry, so he looked at Takihiro and found him pointing a gun to his head.  
  
"You just allowed two Clan stars to simply walk out of Germany with ten fully equipped Clan mechs," Takihiro calmly said. "When did you plan on telling me about this?"  
  
Tenku did not respond. He did not know how. All he wanted to do was take the gun away from Takihiro's hands and leave. In an instant, he pushed Takihiro's hand away from his face, but immediately he felt an explosion in his right temple, for less than a second, and after, nothing else.  
  
His body dropped next to Yuri who began to cry hysterically after being covered in Tenku's blood, while Kadena could not lower his arm after firing point-blank at Tenku.  
  
"Get her out of here," ordered Takihiro, but Kadena just stood frozen in place. Not getting a response, Takihiro barked. "Get her out of here! Now!"  
  
Kadena snapped out his trance and moved to Yuri, who was still crying. He held her and helped her walk out the room. Once they were gone, Takihiro removed his jacket and covered Tenku's head delicately. He stood over for a few seconds, but he lost strength in his legs and sat down.  
  
"Tenku," he whispered, and began to cry.  
  
=====  
  
"We just received another dispatch," said one of the techs.  
  
"Let me see it," she said as she came closer to the feed and began reading the report.  
  
'Lady Mc.,  
  
With the following we would like to request your services, once more, concerning the last contact point. We have received some rather disturbing reports concerning the illegal distribution of Clan technology inside Terra itself. Being it our duty to protect Terra from any outside influences, the use of Clan technology is prohibited within any military installations located in Terra, with the exception of research and development. The request was given out by a traitor within the last contact point, and we assume it was given as a means of infiltrating even further within.  
  
Unfortunately, the location of the last contact must still be kept secret, simply because of its precious content. Shall we begin to move within Terra itself, certain religious factors will begin to stir as provocation of points long forgotten. We cannot also move, as this might bring suspicion from within any of the larger estates that hold place within our committees.  
  
We feel we may count on your services, as we have before. Discretion is, and always has been, truly well maintained between the two. So, we ask once more that we be aware of the delicacy of this contract, if accepted, in terms both favorable to you, and as well as us. Therefore, we do not wish that you suffer unnecessarily by simply entering a battlefield, without first being prepared by our very best.  
  
Attached, you will find a list of mechs retrieved from one of Terra's manufacturers, and also a larger force we believe will also enter the arena, but with its own purpose. Shall you decide to engage with the larger force, then your fee shall be greater. But I remind you that priority falls in removing any unnecessary Clan technology used outside of the safe parameters set by us and the committee. Anything else you may find shall become targets of opportunity.  
  
We hope we may count on you once more,  
PD S.M.'  
  
She studied the letter once more, trying to read between the lines and understand every single, and significant, detail concerning the new mission. She knew that by taking this mission, she would fulfill her people's destiny. But to her it also meant risking their lives unnecessarily. But choices were few as resources ran low. Accepting the contract meant refitting and repairing, as well as fresh supplies. The more she thought about it, the more desirable the contract became.  
  
"McMillan," she called into one of her com-screens.  
  
"My Lady?" Alexis responded, his face filling the small monitor.  
  
"Have you read the new contract?"  
  
"I have, my Lady," he said. "It is a sound contract, and they have yet to fail us."  
  
"So, it is a good contract."  
  
"It is. The two Clan stars shall provide quite a fight, but I expect none, if any, from the larger force."  
  
She considered this for a few seconds before continuing, "then get ready. We will honor the contract."  
  
"And my Lady? Will you be joining us?"  
  
"I will be, Alexis. I will be."  
  
"Very good, Lady McEvedy."  
  
=====  
  
Its time had come. As it stood up, both pair of legs shook straining under this new sensation of carrying its own weight. But it only took a few seconds to grow accustomed to gravity. It then moved to take its first step, then the other and another. It's immense front legs crushed anything that was underneath them, not feeling remorse for humanity's creation or humanity itself. The smaller back legs helped it push its immense mass forward. Having now acquired a sense of direction, it looked from side to side, searching. With every turn of its head, it inhaled, breathing in not only air, but also scents.  
  
And after a few breaths, it found it. It found the creator. 


	14. Genesis 1:4

I don't own anything here...  
  
"How long is it going to take?" Misato asked as she looked over Daniella's shoulder.  
  
"Quite a while."  
  
"Is it that hard?"  
  
"It's not hard," she said, "just frustrating. You know that the Seele Committee is no longer composed of real human beings, just software. The problem being that when the original human Seele implemented themselves into the software, they also added their entire personalities. Imagine having the will to survive, as well as the ability to stop others from destroying you."  
  
"So, they're making themselves difficult to erase?" Misato asked. "Wouldn't be easier to create an anti-virus, and have it look for the Seele program?"  
  
"Way ahead of you. As a matter of fact, when we installed Magi, and Seele, I made sure that both ran independently, in part, from each other. The problem now is that since Seele is also conscious of its existence, it tries to find an exit through anything we throw at it. Magi is doing its part by trying to find a way to purge it from its systems."  
  
Misato and Daniella were in Unit 01's control room, facing the mech, and had been working non-stop since Daniella's release. Both Commanders, Ikari and Evans, had signed the release under one condition, that Daniella, on her own, must contact Comstar after the coming events have settled down to more quieter levels. The first item on the list, after the initial contact, was to maintain Nerv as an independent entity. Make sure no one claimed rights over Unit 01, or the lost technology to recreate one to its likeness. Second, and perhaps most importantly, was that Comstar would allow Nerv to maintain one battalion in its own premises. But in case of a larger force, then the ComGuard would deploy a full military force to counter it. In exchange, Nerv would not allow its technology to be released to anyone, whether it be Great House, Clan, mercenary, Word of Blake, Periphery or Comstar itself, allowing stability among them all in being devoid of such technology. Also, in exchange, Nerv would go back to its original post-Amaris mission, which was to preserve Terra's historical, religious, and past scientific achievements until the second millennium. As an incentive, Nerv would aid ROM in finding Seele's terminals, and deposits, until all of Seele's Committee was terminated.  
  
But all terms of contract would become moot, unless Daniella was successful in breaking Nerv away from Seele before they were able to pinpoint Unit 01's location. It was known that Seele's forces would use its integration in the terminals and system, in order to acquire an exact position of Nerv's mech bays, airfields, and surface-to-air defenses. With that in mind, the Commanders had only ordered Nerv's wing of fighters to remain in flight formation, due to the fighters being the last to be able to take-off under heavy fire. Every other military asset was informed to stay alert for incoming attacks. There was no point in having them move, or set up defenses or positions; Seele would be aware of it all. Reason why Daniella was working furiously on removing the Seele program. And Misato waited to launch Unit 01 away from Central Base before the attack began.  
  
"Misato," she heard someone call her from behind.  
  
She turned around to find Shinji entering, already dressed in his plug suit.  
  
"Are you ready?" She asked.  
  
"Yeah, I guess." he answered unenthusiastically.  
  
"Come on," she said smiling as she pushed him out the door. "Be a boy."  
  
"How long do I have to be in there for?"  
  
"I don't know, but you'll stay there as long as it takes."  
  
"I won't have to fight, will I?"  
  
"Let's hope not," she answered sincerely.  
  
With that he left the room and walked to Unit 01's dock. Misato walked back to Daniella but was able to see through the glass as Shinji walked behind Unit 01 and disappeared from view. A few seconds later an automated voice warned everyone to leave the dock area, followed by a whirring sound and a hydraulic arm lifting the plug. The Eva's back, below the neck, opened up allowing the arm to insert the cylindrical plug inside. Once it had been inserted, the back closed, sealing Shinji inside. Once Unit 01 was activated, the LCL lake was drained and the restraints removed, readying the Eva to launch.  
  
Misato checked Shinji's synch ratio, and was amazed by the sudden 89% compatibility between Shinji and Unit 01 in just the startup. But then she remembered what Shinji and Unit 01 truly were, and simply chuckled at her forgetfulness. She knew that Shinji did not need to be connected to Unit 01, in order for the Eva to operate, but Shinji's way of being made him actually have to follow orders. Since the moment she had met him, he had always been one only to follow orders, and never to be creative or independent. Maybe that's why he was so dependent upon her, and the others.  
  
"I got it." Daniella said. "Magi is deleting all Seele entries and paths, and in a few minutes it will be fully operational."  
  
"Good. Now we have to call Takihiro and let him know we're ready."  
  
"I'm here." Takihiro said as he walked into the room, ashen faced.  
  
Daniella immediately ran to him and held him close, trying to see if he was all right. Misato, upon hearing whispers between the two, knew she was not needed at the moment so she walked out the room and headed for the Unit 01's dock. She found one of the vid-coms, and called Shinji.  
  
"Shinji," she said softly.  
  
"Misato?" He asked. There was no visual, since the plug was filled with LCL and putting anything in there besides the necessary could contaminate the inside of the plug.  
  
"Shinji, can I ask you for something? Can I ask you for a favor?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"I--" She could not continue. She knew it would not be fair to him if she continued. But being in a strange land, in a strange time was too much for her. And now seeing Takihiro and Daniella together, proved how alone she felt. "I hope you do well in there."  
  
"Hmm, thank you, I guess. But what did you need?"  
  
"Just that you be okay," she said as a tear rolled down her cheek.  
  
"Sure, Misato."  
  
She sighed, unfulfilled by such emptiness that now surrounded her, but she knew now that her priority had become Shinji and Unit 01. She looked at her surroundings and began inspecting it all, from the walls to the piping, from the rooms to the Main Tactics room. Seele had decided to recreate everything, to the minutest detail in order to give Shinji a more similar surrounding. But she did not expect everything to be so exact as it was now. It was eerie seeing everything, so much, she expected Dr. Ritzuko to walk in the dock at any time. She was sure Shinji must have felt the same way before, and he probably would have expected more when he was told that he would share housing with Takihiro. Too bad all plans had gone awry. Now, Shinji was confined in Nerv, for god knows how long. And the more Misato thought about it, the more she realized that she would be suffering confinement as well.  
  
"Misato!" She turned to see Daniella calling her, with Takihiro behind her. "We have to go."  
  
"Why?" She asked. "What's going on?"  
  
"Seele is here."  
  
=====  
  
"Enemy units standing in sector A5 are now on the move. We are yet to make visual contact."  
  
"Large movement around second target area. ECM system is in full deployment by enemy units."  
  
"Fighters approaching third target. Awaiting order for visual contact."  
  
"Enemy dropships have lifted-off. Number of deployed units is unknown."  
  
Takihiro, Daniella and Misato walked into the midst of chaos. Sub-Commander Evans was directing the entire scenario, in Takihiro's place, readying an effective defense against the invading force. Commander Ikari had began arranging the evacuation of unnecessary personnel, as well as laying out Unit 01's escape route. Around them both, dozens of officers ran back and forth between their terminals and others. Orders and commands were voiced over person-to-person, by shouting, or loudspeaker. In the main monitor, the mountains were visible, but the hidden enemy had kept themselves concealed truly well between trees and rock outcrops. In the 3-dimensional topographical map, below the screen, points and marks, representing support vehicles and infantry, were moving around, rearranging themselves into their respective positions. Nerv's mobile armor, consisting of a battalion, and infantry, a company, seemed to be playing a game of ordered chaos as each unit found their preset place. Their mech battalion, meanwhile, awaited Takihiro's direct orders for deployment and organization.  
  
"What do you know about the ECM units?" Takihiro asked as he walked behind his three new aides.  
  
"We haven't been able to recognize those units. Radar can't pick them, probes have yet to be deployed, and our fighters are awaiting orders to contact enemy units."  
  
"Are they stand stills?"  
  
"No, sir. The area of cover has been in constant move, but the moment we think they have minimal coverage, another unit replaces it."  
  
"Then give me a print out of movement speed, times of switch, as well as amount of time it takes to replace one ECM unit for another." He ordered before he moved to talk privately with the Commanders, and mentioned for Daniella and Misato to join him.  
  
"You also suspect them of having a battalion?" Evans asked.  
  
"Yeah, I do," answered Takihiro. "I also expect them to be well supplied. But we have the advantage in being at the home base."  
  
"But they will surround us," added Misato.  
  
"They will, but they haven't yet. I don't know why, but they could be waiting for aerial support."  
  
"They're not," said Ikari. "They're waiting for Unit 01. The moment the Eva shows itself outside Central, they will bombard us, and then send their units down to destroy whatever forces we have left. We are fortunate we reside within Terra and no atmospheric bombardment will occur."  
  
"Why no atmospheric bombardment?" Misato asked.  
  
"Because Terra has been labeled neutral territory," answered Evans, "and no fighting is allowed within it. Of course, some people tend to bend the rules. In this case, Seele will not bombard for two reasons. One, atmospheric bombardment will attract the attention of espionage transmissions, and second, since long range bombardment is not as precise as unit bombardment, because of distance, they might hit Unit 01."  
  
"Then why don't we hit them first?" Daniella asked.  
  
"We could," Evans said, "but we would only hit part of their forces. We don't know how well distributed they are, or where their long-range artillery is."  
  
"True," said Misato. "But shouldn't we first draw them out, before they commence firing?"  
  
"I'm seriously thinking about it," said Takihiro as one of the aides handed him printed report he had requested. "But if I draw one side out, how do I know I'm dragging their artillery out into the open?"  
  
"We use our fighters," said Ikari. "We divide them into three companies, and have them hit an enemy point respectively. Once their cover is blown, we use sniper equipment to destroy their ECM units."  
  
"There are three ECM units traveling at a speed of 65 KPH," said Takihiro as he read the report, "with a difference of one to two minutes between them. These are reconnaissance mechs, obviously, and they're probably equipped with Angel ECMs, BAP systems, and TAGs for their artillery. I'm guessing, since Seele seems to be very old fashioned, that they're using Ravens. Now, I want two assaults ready for sniper duty as well as Unit 01 with its HH Gauss Rifle. Both assault mechs will wait outside for cue, but Unit 01 will have its position from inside one of the mech bays. I don't want to give Seele a chance to attack before we do."  
  
"We can't do that." Daniella added. "Shinji is not capable of killing, and he never will be ready. It will be even worse if he is told that he has to kill someone."  
  
"Misato?" Asked Takihiro. "Is this true?"  
  
"If we force Shinji," answered Misato, "or if we trick him into, he could go into shock. And that would make Unit 01 to go berserk."  
  
"Berserk?" Asked Takihiro. "That's what happened to Unit 01 during initial testing."  
  
Takihiro thought about the new element introduced, now, into the battlefield. Unit 01 going berserk was actually a point for Nerv, but in that state the Eva tended to be unpredictable and it could easily turn against them. But if pushed correctly, then Unit 01 could become their one and only hope.  
  
"Let's go ahead and proceed as planned," he said.  
  
"Are you certain about this, Commander?" Asked Evans.  
  
"Allow me to do what I am here for, and I will do it well."  
  
=====  
  
"Shinji, do you remember the Pulsitron rifle?" Misato asked  
  
"Yes."  
  
"We're giving you a smaller version of it. It's more lightweight, more accurate, and more powerful. So now you have a higher accuracy rate than the .00001 percentage we had last time."  
  
Everyone turned to Misato when she mentioned this.  
  
"Long story," she said. "If we survive, I'll tell you all about it."  
  
"Shinji," Takihiro said, "the rifle you are carrying is a rail gun called Gauss rifle. Its barrel is composed of a series of electro magnetically charged sectors and isolation areas, which propel the shell towards the barrel nozzle. And since there is no friction, the projectile can achieve a speed of at least Mach 5. Because the rifle is not attached to Unit 01, like it would to any other mech with allocation slots, there is a small chance of error due to outside interferences like wind velocity and weight. That's why you will be stationed inside one of the mech bays looking outside. You'll be blocked from wind, and you will be able to rest the rifle on one of the railings."  
  
"What's my target?" Shinji asked.  
  
"There are three, but you'll have to hit only one. The targets are Raven mechs, and though I don't have an exact variant, I am sending you a visual of what they look like, but they are all used for reconnaissance and undercover operations. Right now the three out there are hiding several units within their respective covert areas, and the hidden units are all powered down. I'm about to send several fighters to engage the three enemy groups and have them activate their radars. Once fighting has began, you, and the other two mechs, will have a time window of about 15 seconds to find and destroy you respective enemy mechs. It's 15 seconds because that's how long it takes the rifle to reload a slug and cool down. Also 15 because I doubt my fighters will be able to hold down for thirty. Is that understood?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then proceed to the second mech bay, and await further orders."  
  
Unit 01 moved down to the corridor adjoining the rest of the mech bays. Meanwhile, Takihiro turned to his three aides and started arranging orders of operation.  
  
"What's a Pulsitron rifle?" Takihiro asked without looking back at Misato.  
  
"Oh," said Misato smiling awkwardly. "I'd forgotten about that. It wasn't really a rifle, but rather an impromptu creation that used charged ion particles to create a beam that could penetrate an angel's AT field."  
  
"Just like our PPCs, except we use plasma from a reactor to create a beam."  
  
"And how are they connected to the mech?" Misato asked this time.  
  
"A reactor itself drives the mech. The PPC simply siphons off excess energy into it until it is ready to fire."  
  
"Well, in our case, since we used electricity, we pretty much blacked out an entire city to feed the rifle. Not very convenient by your standards."  
  
"And hopefully, not by yours either," said Daniella.  
  
"The blackout was so bad, we weren't allowed to use it again."  
  
"Commander Takihiro."  
  
Takihiro turned to see Kadena and Yuri standing at the doorway, saluting him. Immediately, he grew frustrated. After the incident with Tenku, he had ordered them both relieved of their duties for the time being, until everything in Nerv had resumed under its normal order of operations. He was also giving them enough time, which was traditional, to mourn for Tenku's death. But having them here would be an emotional baggage for him, and more baggage than a war, he did not need.  
  
"What are you doing here?" He asked.  
  
"We decided to stay, Commander," Kadena said. "We can't leave, and simply allow someone else to perform our assigned duties."  
  
"Forgive us, Commander," Yuri added bowing, and Kadena following after her. "But the needs of all are greater than those of us."  
  
"I don't care. I gave you a direct order, and you disobeyed it. Right now your intentions amount to nothing because you ignored what I said in the first place."  
  
"Commander Takihiro," interrupted Evans, "I understand that your officer's breach of command should result in severe penalties. But at the moment, we surely need every available hand capable of assisting us."  
  
"Commander Ikari?" Asked Takihiro turning to Gendou. "What is your say in this?"  
  
"That, I leave to you, Commander," Ikari said. "Your officers are your responsibility, and this decision should be made as you see fit."  
  
Takihiro thought about it, and the more he thought about it, the more it made sense to him. Allowing both, Kadena and Yuri, back into service would supply him with trained personnel. Also, it would occupy both of their minds from depressing thoughts, just like it was to him. And at this moment, he wanted everyone he knew he could trust next to him. But if he relieved all three of his new aides, then one spot would be left vacant. He began thinking about possible replacements, when he looked to the side and found the perfect one.  
  
"Alright," he said finally pointing a finger at them both. "I will accept your return. But mark my words that once this is over, we will seriously discuss this. Is that clear?"  
  
"Yes, sir." They both answered in unison.  
  
"I'm not done yet," he said before they had a chance to sit down. "I will be adding a new officer, and I will be re-arranging tasks. Kadena, you will take Tactics, while Yuri, I'm assigning you to Com-command. As of this moment, there are only five minutes until contact. Sit down, glance through orders and get to work."  
  
"Yes, sir."  
  
"And who's taking Statistics?" Daniella asked.  
  
"You are," he said.  
  
Daniella was about to protest, but upon seeing the seriousness of Takihiro's expression, she decided against it. The three new aides were immediately relieved and ordered back to their regular commands, while Takihiro's officers and Daniella took their seats and readied themselves for the task ahead.  
  
"Kadena," Takihiro said. "I'm waiting on our fighters."  
  
"Roger that, Commander," Kadena answered. "Countdown to begin in T minus 90 seconds until initial contact. Company Alpha, coming in North-northwest. Company Beta, coming in East-northeast. Company Kappa, coming in East- Southeast."  
  
"Nerv Alpha Wing is now online, Commander," said Yuri. "I'm putting Captain Johan online."  
  
"This is Alpha Wing Captain, Johan, online, Commander," a thundering voice filled the room. "We are armed and ready. Any further instructions before contact, over."  
  
"Proceed as planned, Captain," Takihiro responded. "Good luck and good hunting."  
  
"Roger, Commander."  
  
"Yuri, allow feed over intercom and loudspeaker."  
  
"Roger, Commander."  
  
The room filled with the voices of pilots as they said their customary salutes and catch phrases. Some were wonderfully said, others were simply bad words, while others wished their companions and Nerv good luck. All in all, 36 pilots, and 12 co-pilots paid their respects to each other and their families. Some of the officers inside the Tactics Room stopped to listen, others tried to busy themselves with work, and others held their breath in expectation. But they all hoped, in a true sincere wish, that all 48 men and women flying out there, would come back alive.  
  
"Contact," Kadena's voice boomed in the room, "T minus 5."  
  
"4."  
  
"3."  
  
"2."  
  
"1."  
  
"Fire at will," came the order, followed by confirmation of 36 fighters hitting exactly, around, or close to their targets.  
  
"No enemy response--"  
  
"Turning back for second--"  
  
"I'M HIT!"  
  
"I just lost a lance!"  
  
"Incoming fire from--"  
  
"Ejecting! Ejecting!"  
  
"Enemy on radar!"  
  
"What the--? I have a damned Rifleman shooting down my--"  
  
"Commander, we have two Riflemen shooting down our fighters."  
  
"Acknowledged, but where are the Ravens!"  
  
"This is mech lance leader Stevens in 111th. I have Raven mech visual."  
  
"Fire at will."  
  
"This is mech pilot Elias in 321st. I also have Raven mech visual."  
  
"Fighter down! I'm down to one Flight--"  
  
"Second wave coming back--"  
  
"Where's the third Raven?"  
  
"I have no visual! I can't fire until I have a-- I see it! I see it!"  
  
"Fighter Company Pride is pulling out--"  
  
"We can't hold out any--"  
  
"Shinji! Do you have a visual!"  
  
"I have one! I have a visual!"  
  
"Fire at will! If you have a Raven, within your sights, fire at will!"  
  
Nothing was said for a second that seemed more of an eternity. But immediately, following the never ending second, all three suspected enemy groups were lit up by several red markings. The enemy units had been revealed.  
  
"Enemy mechs approaching!" Kadena shouted. "I have 6 Catapults coming in within firing distance. Three are coming in from North-northwest, the other three East-northeast!"  
  
"I have multiple mech readings!" Yuri added. "Two full companies. They are accompanied by armor and infantry!"  
  
"Have fighters fire upon the Catapults!" Takihiro ordered.  
  
"Negative!" Responded Daniella. "We are down to seven fighters. Those Riflemen are destroying them!"  
  
"Have them pull back then!" Takihiro said. "Have turrets fire! To all lance leaders! Prepare to engage the enemy! Armored unit, stand behind your respective mech lances!"  
  
"Catapults are within distance and have began firing!"  
  
Immediately a shock was felt in the room as each missile hit close, or exactly, upon the building. Debris began to fall, though large damage was still to be seen.  
  
"Mech bay areas 3, 4, 5, 7, and 8 have been destroyed. We just lost five lances!"  
  
"Our fighter have been completely destroyed!"  
  
"Enemy units have passed 1st perimeter!"  
  
"We are beginning to engage enemy units!"  
  
"Unit 01 is leaving mech bay 2, and has entered the battlefield!"  
  
Takihiro looked at the mess that lay in front of him. The fight would be long and hard, but he knew that many lives, not only of his crew, but those of even who knew not the events that were happening, were dependent upon his choices. And as he took a deep breath, he made up his mind and left the room running, communicating to everyone still inside the room of the choice he had just made. 


End file.
